The founding father of the Slow Food movement is Carlo Petrini, an Italian, who recognized in 1986 that the industrialization of food was standardizing taste and leading to the annihilation of thousands of food varieties and flavors. Concerned that the world was quickly reaching a point of no return, he wanted to reach out to consumers and demonstrate to them that they have choices beyond fast food and supermarket homogenization. He rallied his friends and began to speak out at every available opportunity and soon the movement was born and Slow Food was created. Today the organization is active in over 150 countries and has a worldwide membership of over 100,000. People have responded to the growing movement because they have become tired of buying the same things, eating the same foods and living the same lives. With these interests in mind, our mission is to keep alive and grow a robust, active movement that protects taste, culture and the environment as universal social values. Slow Food programs are dedicated to the mingling of taste, culture and the environment.

The Slow Food Oʻahu Chapter

Slow Food Oʻahu is one of more than 80 chapters of Slow Food USA located throughout the United States. We are dedicated to promoting the values of the slow food movement (see below) here on Oʻahu. Slow Food Oʻahu has a volunteer board, and operates through its bylaws. We meet approximately monthly to conduct business. For more information, contact us at slowfoodoahu@yahoo.com

Meet the Board of Directors—SFO Board

Our Values

Slow Food Oʻahu subscribes to the Statement of Principles adopted by Slow Food USA:

• Sustainability
  • recognizing the interdependence of people with one another and with our environment
  • caring for the land and protecting biodiversity for today’s communities and future generations
  • promoting food that is local, seasonal and organically grown
• Cultural diversity
  • recognizing food as a language that expresses cultural diversity
  • preserving the myriad traditions of the table
  • cultivating and reinvigorating a sense of community and place
• Pleasure and quality in everyday life
  • celebrating the diverse expressions of our earth’s bounty
  • appreciating and encouraging creativity, passion and beauty
  • respecting and supporting artisans who grow, produce, market, prepare and serve wholesome food
• Inclusiveness
  • Following democratic principles in a spirit of sharing and service
  • Educating members and others about Slow Food’s mission
• Dedicating ourselves to local cooperation and global collaboration
  • embodying authenticity and integrity
  • ensuring our values are embodied by all staff, board members and convivium leaders
  • manifesting these values in all of our events, projects and publications
  • committing ourselves to partnerships with like-minded individuals and organizations
• To these we would add a concern for humane treatment of farm animals, and a policy of supporting food charities from the proceeds of all events