The eigth edition of Cheese will be inaugurated in Bra, Piedmont, Italy, on Friday the September 16. A jam-packed program awaits Cheese visitors in this four-day fair which will unwind in the streets of the town’s historic city centre. Here is a list of the most interesting international events for the foreign press.
Friday
4pm – Cheese Official Opening Ceremony (Piazza Caduti per la Libertà, Bra – in case of bad weather: Politeama Boglione Theatre, piazza Carlo Alberto).
6pm – Preserving Biodiversity, Preserving the Planet (Palazzo Mathis – 1st floor, piazza Caduti della Libertà 20). Domestic biodiversity, selected by man through 10.000 years of agriculture, is now at risk and even more endangered than wild species. Only agriculture respectful of biodiversity can guarantee good and healthy food, fertile soils and liveable landscapes. With Bo Normander, Director Worldwatch Institute Europe; Ariel Brunner, Head of EU Policy, BirdLife Europe; Susanna Cenni, Member of the Italian Parliament, Agriculture Committee; Francesco Sottile, Professor at the University of Palermo, Faculty of Agriculture and Silvio Greco, Slow Food Environmental Committee Coordinator.
Saturday:
11.30 am Carlo Petrini meets the foreign press in Piazza della Liberta 20, Palazzo Mathis, 2nd floor.
5.30pm – African Herders (The Biodiversity Space, Chiesa San Rocco, via Cavour).
African herders and pastoralists are experiencing difficult times. Hear experiences from Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Kenya, from herders and producers of yogurt, curdled milk and cheese. Slow Food presents the documentary Jeans&Martò by Clio Sozzani and Claudia Palazzi, the story of a young Ethiopian herder and his journey from his village to Terra Madre. Followed by a tasting of Pokot ash yogurt.
Sunday
3pm – Let’s Defend Raw Milk! (The Biodiversity Space, Chiesa San Rocco, via Cavour). Preserving raw-milk cheese production means protecting the diversity of pastures, breeds and knowledge. Slow Food has been defending raw milk for over a decade, but for the first time has decided to bring information and experiences together in a special section on its website, describing herders, dairies, cheeses and animals and providing invaluable practical indications for consumers and producers. Representatives of the Irish Campaign for Raw Milk will be taking part.
Monday
12pm – Milk Workshop – The Network of European Cheesemakers (Palazzo Mathis – 1st floor, piazza Caduti della Libertà 20). A number of European cheesemakers from Italy, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Sweden have decided to unite, and they’ll be identifying what problems they share. With Guido Tallone, Dairy and Food Farming Technologies Institute; Yolande Moulem, Actilait – Fédération Nationale des Eleveurs des Chèvvres/FNEC; Marc Albrecht-Seidel, VHM; Sophie Espinosa, Fédération Nationale des Eleveurs des Chèvres and Remedios Carrasco, Asociacion de queserìas Artesanas de Campo. Moderator: Frédéric Blanchard, Fédération Nationale des Eleveurs des Chèvres.