Slow Food Italia is preparing to unveil a sweeping, 18-volume encyclopedia of Italian food biodiversity this September in Turin, marking one of the final projects conceived by the movement's late founder, Carlo Petrini, who passed away in May 2026 at age 76. The collection, titled "Atlanti dell'Arca del Gusto" (Atlases of the Ark of Taste), will be presented at Terra Madre Salone del Gusto between September 24 and 28 in the presence of Italian President Sergio Mattarella, underscoring the cultural and political weight of the initiative.
Why This Matters:
• Cultural preservation: The atlases catalog endangered regional foods—from ancient grains to rare cheeses—that risk disappearing from Italian tables.
• Educational resource: Schools, chefs, and local governments will gain structured access to biodiversity data previously scattered across online databases.
• Petrini's legacy: The project represents the intellectual culmination of a movement that transformed food into a political and ethical matter in Italy and globally.
A Blueprint for Edible Heritage
The Atlanti dell'Arca del Gusto comprise a region-by-region survey of Italy's endangered food products, each volume detailing the histories, production methods, and cultural significance of items that have been cataloged by the global Ark of Taste project. Slow Food Italia will provide complete details on the regional coverage at the launch event in September.
The collection was developed in partnership with the Università degli Studi di Scienze Gastronomiche (UNISG) in Pollenzo, the institution Petrini co-founded in 2004 as the world's first interdisciplinary university dedicated to gastronomy. Students, faculty, and regional coordinators spent years compiling entries, converting the fragmented Arca del Gusto online catalog—launched in 1996—into a stable, print-based reference tool.
Serena Milano, director-general of Slow Food Italia, emphasized the educational ambition during a preview event in Tropea, Calabria, last week. "We want to give dignity and pride to the work of farmers," she said, "and spread knowledge so people understand what lies behind the food they eat."
What This Means for Residents
For anyone living in Italy—whether native, expat, or long-term resident—the atlases offer a practical roadmap to conscious consumption. Rather than relying on industrial supply chains or imported substitutes, the volumes provide names, stories, and sourcing strategies for 1,206 Italian products currently listed in the Ark of Taste, from heirloom vegetables to artisanal cured meats.
Local governments and agriturismi can use the atlases to design protected designation schemes or farm-to-table tourism routes. Chefs gain a reference for menu authenticity, while educators can integrate biodiversity lessons into school curricula. The initiative also aligns with broader EU sustainability targets, positioning Italy as a leader in agrobiodiversity preservation within the bloc.
The timing is deliberate: Terra Madre 2026 marks the 40th anniversary of Slow Food Italia. The festival, a five-day convergence of producers, activists, and policymakers, will feature a central market, taste workshops, and debates on food policy—a thematic pillar for this edition. The atlases will be distributed to libraries, culinary schools, and municipal archives, ensuring their role as living documents rather than academic relics.
From Protest to Encyclopedia
Carlo Petrini, born in Bra on June 22, 1949, died on May 21, 2026, leaving behind a movement that redefined Italy's relationship with food. His activism began in the 1980s with a protest against a McDonald's opening near Rome's Piazza di Spagna, a confrontation that led to the founding of Arcigola in 1983 and Slow Food in 1989. Petrini served as president until 2022, transforming a localized campaign into a global network spanning 160 countries.
His philosophy—"good, clean, and fair" food—challenged industrial agriculture and reframed eating as an ethical act. The Arca del Gusto, launched at the first Salone del Gusto in Turin in 1996, became one of his signature initiatives, cataloging foods at risk of extinction due to climate change, rural depopulation, and genetic erosion. By 1999, an Italian commission had established selection criteria, and by 2002, the project had expanded internationally.
The atlases embody Petrini's final vision: not a static archive, but a call to action. "The goal is not to create a museum," Slow Food's biodiversity foundation has stated, "but to signal existence, denounce risk, and invite everyone to act—by seeking, buying, consuming, and supporting producers."
Tropea's Tribute and Regional Pride
The preview event in Tropea, a coastal town in Calabria, carried symbolic weight. Milano described Calabria as "the region richest in biodiversity on the Peninsula," a nod to its inclusion in the Ark of Taste with dozens of entries, from Tropea red onions to bergamot citrus.
Giovanni Macrì, mayor of Tropea, announced that the town will dedicate a permanent public space to Petrini's memory and message, details of which remain forthcoming. The gesture reflects a broader trend among Italian municipalities to institutionalize Slow Food principles in urban planning, from farmers' markets to food waste reduction ordinances.
How to Engage with the Atlases
Once released, the volumes will be available through Slow Food Italia's network of condotte (local chapters), university libraries, and select bookstores. The initiative also feeds into the Presidio system, a tier of protection beyond the Ark of Taste that involves direct producer support, quality standards, and market access.
For residents, the practical takeaway is straightforward: the atlases identify what to ask for at markets, which producers to support, and how to cook with ingredients that carry centuries of regional knowledge. In a country where food fraud—such as counterfeit olive oil or mislabeled cheese—remains a persistent issue, the atlases serve as a shield of authenticity.
The Terra Madre Salone del Gusto festival itself is free to enter, with ticketed workshops and tastings. The event will occupy multiple venues across Turin, including Piazza Castello, the Mercato Centrale, and the Palazzo del Lavoro, transforming the Piedmont capital into a laboratory for regenerative food systems.
The Broader Legacy
Petrini's contributions extended beyond catalogs and festivals. His co-founding of the Comunità Laudato Si', inspired by Pope Francis's encyclical on ecology, positioned Slow Food within Catholic social teaching on environmental stewardship. His books—including Buono, pulito e giusto (2005) and TerraFutura (2020), a dialogue with the Pope—framed food as inseparable from justice, climate, and identity.
The atlases also serve as a counterpoint to Italy's agricultural challenges: land abandonment in the south, monoculture expansion in the Po Valley, and declining rural populations. By documenting what remains, Slow Food creates a baseline for restoration projects and agroecological transitions.
President Mattarella's attendance at the September launch underscores the state's recognition of food as cultural heritage, akin to art or language. Italy's Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies has historically collaborated with Slow Food on Geographic Indication (GI) protections, and the atlases may inform future legislative measures to safeguard small-scale producers.
For those living in Italy, the Atlanti dell'Arca del Gusto offer more than nostalgia—they provide a framework for resisting homogenization, supporting regional economies, and ensuring that the foods tied to Italian identity survive into the next generation.
