Festa del BIO and MontagnaMadre: “Let’s save the internal areas, a heritage of biodiversity, health and opportunities for the future for the new generations”

Rome chooses a more sustainable future: thousands of people participated in the “ Festa del BIO e MontagnaMadre ” the event, organized on March 29 and 30 by FederBio and Slow Food Italia, with the contribution of the Mountain Partnership division of the FAO and the Botanical Garden-La Sapienza, with the aim of promoting the adoption of healthier and more responsible lifestyles, starting with food choices. An attitude increasingly found in people that translates into paying greater attention to the origin of food, enhancing the role of the farmer, custodian of knowledge and traditions, favoring short supply chains and biodistricts that have the ability to unite territories and people, putting producers and citizens in direct contact.

The message launched by the Roman event focused on the importance of safeguarding internal and mountainous areas, fragile territories at risk of depopulation, but at the same time precious treasure chests that preserve a rich environmental, landscape, cultural and tourist heritage. Mountains play a crucial role in the protection of water resources, hydrogeological structure, biodiversity and forests, essential elements for maintaining the balance of our country's ecosystem.

Furthermore, the importance of promoting food policies, such as those contained in the food policy of the Municipality of Rome, which aim to support agroecological production, the return of producers to local markets and the increase of organic food in collective catering and school canteens, while reducing waste, has clearly emerged. In general, food policies, which a growing number of cities are implementing worldwide, represent key tools for connecting inland and mountainous areas with urban areas, putting the farmer at the center of the relationship with citizens. Food policies contribute to building food sovereignty and security, favoring the transition towards a more equitable and sustainable system.

“We strongly wanted the Masaf to establish for the first time a specific delegation dedicated to agriculture in internal and mountain areas because we are convinced that it is strategic for the future of our entire primary sector”, stated the Undersecretary for Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forests, Luigi D'Eramo . “It is a priority to address the existing critical issues and safeguard these territories, both to slow down depopulation and abandonment, and to enhance their multiple potential and achieve new sustainable development”. “The protagonists of this development – continues the Undersecretary – will increasingly be organic and biodynamic agriculture and livestock farming, together with the organic districts that we are supporting with conviction. In fact, they represent an added value that characterizes places with great environmental and landscape heritage, rich in culture, traditions and biodiversity, which can also grow a lot from a tourism point of view”

"The mountain is a crucial area for agriculture. If critical issues are highlighted in mountain and hilly areas, it is clear that this will have a negative impact on the entire national agricultural sector - underlines Maria Grazia Mammuccini, President of FederBio - . According to recent Nomisma elaborations on ISTAT data, between 2000 and 2020 Italian agricultural companies decreased by 52%, going from 2.4 million to 1.15 million, a loss that was concentrated in hilly and mountainous areas for 75%. These numbers clearly underline that having considered the intensive agricultural model suitable for all areas was a strategic error that contributed to the impoverishment of mountain and hilly territorial systems. Curbing the depopulation of mountains and inland areas is an objective that has been pursued for years, I believe that, thanks to the first delegation to the Government that unites organic and inland areas, there may finally be the opportunity to put concrete ideas and projects into action for relaunch these places. For the growth of mountain areas it is essential to focus on the innovation represented by the agroecological model , based on a systemic approach to sustainability and social equity. The recovery of local products, direct sales, the strengthening of tourism, the integration of agricultural production with the spread of organic and biodynamic livestock farming, combined with the promotion of organic districts, can allow the recreation of local economic systems and social networks capable of relaunching these territories, making them attractive in particular for the new generations and women”.

“The large influx of adults, children and young people from Rome to the event shows how there are more and more people who are interested in what nourishes us,” said Barbara Nappini, President of Slow Food Italy . “Slow Food believes that everyone has the right to quality food: good but also virtuous and fair. The current extractive production model that depletes resources without giving anything back must be rethought starting from food. The internal areas and an agroecological approach to agriculture, organic, biodynamic, were at the center of these two days of shared reflection with citizens who, evidently, want to know, understand and participate.”

“We are particularly pleased to have hosted an event of great importance such as the Festa del BIO and MontagnaMadre – underlined Fabio Attorre, Director of the Botanical Garden, Sapienza University of Rome -. The hope is that this initiative, which stimulates a concrete reflection on the future of the environment and communities, starting from the valorization of mountain areas and local productions, can become an annual event that contributes to supporting the educational projects of the Summer school GROW, the training program of the FAO Mountain Partnership. The Botanical Garden, with its strategic position in the heart of Rome, represents the ideal place to raise awareness among citizens on sustainability, environmental protection and biodiversity”.

Festa del BIO and MontagnaMadre was supported by “Being Organic in Eu ”, the project promoted by FederBio in collaboration with Naturland for the valorization of European organic products.