Slow Food movement founder Carlo Petrini dies, aged 76

Carlo Petrini, an Italian activist and founder of the International Slow Food Movement, has died, leaving a ‘huge void not only in the world of food, but in society as a whole’, as per Italian President Sergio Mattarella.

The campaigner, best known for promoting sustainable food production and traditional cooking, died on 21 May in his hometown, Bra, in the Piedmont region of Italy, at the age of 76.

Petrini, who Reuters reported had been diagnosed with prostate cancer in recent years, was described as a ‘visionary leader and public intellectual with a profound commitment to the common good, human relationships and the natural world’ in a statement from the Slow Food press office.

Through his initiatives, including setting up the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, the pioneer had ‘brought to life a global movement rooted in the values of good, clean and fair food for all, connecting communities, farmers, food artisans, cooks, activists, and young people across the world’, the statement added.

Carlo Petrini died in Italy, age. 76 (Vincenzo Lombardo/Getty Images)

Slow Food, formerly known as Arcigola, was set up by Petrini, then working as a journalist, and a small group of friends in the late 1980s to oppose the rise of fast-food in Rome.

Over the years, the initiative has grown to more than 100,000 members worldwide, operating in more than 150 countries.

It puts a major emphasis on quality, environmental sustainability and equitable conditions for producers, as per the BBC.

Mattarella, who has served as the President of Italy since 2015, led the tributes to Petrini last Friday (May 22).

He reported that the healthy living and sustainability advocate’s ‘insights and constant advocacy for sustainability, the need to preserve traditions, the enhancement of local cultures and respect for the environment’ had generated a ‘new awareness of food culture and its production’.

Meanwhile, the Italian agriculture minister, Francesco Lollobrigida, said: “Not every person leaves a trace of their passage, but Carlo Petrini did.”

“Carlo Petrini changed the conscience of gastronomy. He reminded chefs that our responsibility goes far beyond the plate - to biodiversity, farmers, culture and the future of the planet itself,” said Rome-based chef-restaurateur Cristina Bowerman.

“Every chef today who speaks about sustainability, territory and respect for ingredients is in some way walking a path he helped create.”

The activist was friends with the likes of King Charles III and Pope Francis (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Antonio Tajani, deputy prime minister, added that Italy had lost a ‘great’ traditional ambassador in the former FAO Zero Hunger Special Ambassador for Europe.

With his work with the International Slow Food Movement, Petrini became friends with the reigning British monarch, King Charles III, a longstanding champion of organic farming, and the late Pope Francis.

In 2013, he told Italian newspaper La Repubblica that he recieved a telephone call from the Pontiff after he sent him a book and a letter.

“Our phone conversation ended, with wishes of good health and a mutual embrace. A world in which one can fraternally embrace a Pope is truly a beautiful world,” he said at the time.