Slow Food Italia

Agriturismo Fontechiara is a working farm and as food producers we are keen advocates of Slow food Italia and the slow food movement. The international slow food movement was founded by Carlo Petrini in 1986 and offers an alternative to the fast food that now dominates the world and often increases obesity levels.

What is the Slow Food Movement?

Slow Food attempts to promote traditional and regional cuisine and encourages the farming of plants, seeds and livestock characteristic of the local market. As the first part of the broader Slow movement, it has now expanded globally to over 100,000 members in  over 100 countries. The slow food movement encourages sustainable locally produced food and is actively protesting by a political agenda directed against the globalization of agriculture.

The recipe for the slow food movement includes a social conscience, a love of delicious food and maybe a bit of politial activism. Its roots lie in Petrini’s concerted efforts to counter the homogenization of food around the world. When McDonald’s opened their first branch in Rome, Carlo felt determined to preseve regional foods and small producers from extinction and to stimulate a revival and celebrate flavours and localism. Come and visit Fontechiara to experience Slow food Italy at its best.

Slow Travel Italy

Slow travel is a later addition to the Slow Movement and promotes travellers engaging better withthe communities along their route. It aims to get under the skin of local areas and encourage travellers to try the spots enjoyed by local residents rather than merely following guidebooks. There is a considerable overlap with the values of ecotourism or sustainable tourism and slow travllers generally look for low-impact travel styles,

Principles of slowtravel have been documented in the Manifesto for Slow Travel, written by the magazine “Hidden Europe” and these now feature heavily in Travel related articles. They now follow:

Slow travel Europe: some guiding principles:

1. Start slow travel at home. The key to slow travel is a state of mind. That can be developed at home.
2. Travel slow. Avoid planes if at all possible, and instead enjoy ferries, local buses and slow trains. Speed destroys the
connection with landscape. Slow travel restores it.
3. You may eagerly look forward to the arrival at your chosen destination, but don’t let that anticipation eclipse the
pleasure of the journey.
4. Check out local markets and shops.
5. Savour café culture. Sitting in a café, you become part of the cityscape and not merely a passing observer.
6. Take time to get a feel for the languages and dialects of the areas you visit. Learn a few phrases, use a dictionary and buy a local newspaper.
7. Engage with communities at the right level. Choose accommodation and eating options that are appropriate to the
area where you are travelling.
8. Do what the locals do, not only what the guidebooks say.
9. Savour the unexpected. Delayed trains or missed bus connections create new opportunities.
10. Think what you can give back to the communities you visit.

Agriturismo Fontechiara is located in Treia in the province of Macerata in the region of Le Marche in central Italy. We offer B&B or bed and breakfast holidays or for lovers of slow food there are half board or all inclusive holidays. A vacation at Fontechiara allows you to sample ecotourism, locally grown food, our own organic produce, home cooking and great Le Marche wines in a restored farmhouse with stylishly furnished rooms and excellent facilities including a swimming pool. We offer yoga retreats, horse riding holidays, fishing holidays, Italian lessons, olive oil holidays, we offer a dog sitting service and are ideally located for sports and outlet shopping. Le Marche has fantastic beaches, mountains, nature, history, art, activities and more. Please check out our reasonable prices or contact us for more information or to book.