Slow Food First Coast Meeting Minutes
27 October 2009
The meeting was called to order and members of the American Culinary Federation (ACF) were thanked for being in attendance. Chef David Bearl, director of First Coast Technical College’s Culinary Arts program, was complimented in particular for his unending helpfulness and generosity toward Slow Food First Coast. Chef Bearl described his successful recent meeting with Gary Nabhan and colleagues as they came through the St. Augustine area to research Datil peppers. SFFC, Chef Bearl, and Nabhan hope to partner again in the future to expand the Datil’s potential nationally.
It was announced that our official membership (paid memberships) now stands at 112! Thank you for responding to September’s membership drive!
Three important dates for Slow Food first Coast are coming up—PLEASE MARK THESE ON YOUR CALENDARS!
Nov 18: special dinner event at Bistro de Leon in St. Augustine to launch Slow Food-style book called Slow: Life in a Tuscan Town (email with details to follow soon)
Nov 19: Farm City Banquet at St. Johns County Agricultural Center to present Spirit of Slow Food Awards and recognize local farmers and food artisans (email with details to follow soon)
Dec 11: Potluck Dinner, “Locavore” Movie, and Food Drive at Johnny’s Kitchen in Hastings to celebrate Slow Food’s 20th birthday! (details to follow as date approaches)
Richard announced the new members of SFFC’s Steering Committee and thanked them for their energy and enthusiasm as we work behind the scenes together to take the organization to the next level. The Steering Committee welcomes input from all SFFC members! The committee members are:
Guerry Bradley, Tracy Chamberlain, Cathy Guevarra, Bill Hamilton, Mimi Iannuzzi, Joan Kramer, Marcia Lakovitch, Marcia MacPherson, Jean-Stephane Poinard, Amy TerKeurst, and Richard Villadóniga
The steering committee’s first course of action was to name 2010 as the Year of the Young Eater to focus SFFC’s efforts next year on educating children on the benefits of good, clean, and fair food. We look forward to working with the educational community, families, and community members on educating the next generation of eaters and farmers.
Marcia MacPherson of the Snail of Approval committee encouraged members to nominate their favorite restaurant, farm, or business to be recognized with our program. It’s easy to do—go to www.slowfoodfirstcoast.com and click on the Snail of Approval logo to nominate someone today! The more nominations we have, the greater our network of Slow friends we can make in the community. This program rewards those that are taking steps toward a food system that is compatible with SFFC’s goals and serves as an outreach opportunity for us.
Finally, Brendan Burke of the Lighthouse Archaeological Maritime Program gave an outstanding presentation on the history of our region’s shrimping industry and how current threats, such as importation and mangrove destruction, are affecting the domestic industry. He urged us to buy wild American shrimp at places like Kyle’s Seafood Market in North City, the Seafood Market on the beachside, the farmers’ market, or the Riberia Street fishmonger. Check out http://www.wildamericanshrimp.com/main.html and click on “See the new commercial.”
Meeting was adjourned.