There is never a time that I feel more a stranger in my own home town than when I talk about Slow Food. Some people just don’t understand that I cannot sit back support the Walmarting of America instead of growing, building and sustaining the relationship with the one thing that binds us all together…food.

The Greater Binghamton area, if fact, most of the Southern Tier is comprised of a melting pot beyond comprehension. We are steeped in culture, and built from a solid work ethic. But our love and celebration of our ethnic heritage through our love of food is where Greater Binghamton shines the brightest. Think of our Greek Festival, the Ukrainian Festival, Little Italy Days and the Feast days of Saint Anthony’s. We are the reigning Pierogi capital thanks to Mrs. T’s Pierogi, and let’s not forget the Spiedi Fest!

But there is darker side to all this food and festivity. Where do the ingredients come from to make these delicacies? The come from Walmart, Sam’s Club, SYSCO and Maines. The are trucked in to our local grocery stores from countries all over the world. The ingredients have become so bland, so flavorless, that sometimes I wonder if many of people eating these foods would like them if they were made the way the originally were…with produce, meats and cheeses raised right on the farm outside the kitchen door.

Last year we made the decision to make our small Farm as sustainable as possible, but our primary goal was to ensure that our products remained not only naturally grown but ethically grown. Following Slow Food USA’s RAFT ( Renewing America’s Food Traditions Alliance) model we planned, developed and established our farm. Our chickens and ducks are pastured raised and supplemented with organic feed. Our birds are Heritage breeds in need of preservation and listed with the Livestock Breeds Conservancy.They are given comfortable shelter and treated with kindness and respect. They in turn provide us with eggs of a quality most adults and children in the area have never experienced. The yolks are vividly colored, the whites clear and clean, not opaque and cloudy. Our vegetables and herbs are tended to with care, and we recycle and compost to make use of the nutrients that remain and return them to the soil. I wonder at times if many of our local children know that a tomato should smell like a tomato, and that the most delicious of melons do have seeds. I wonder if the younger members of our community know that sometimes vegetables aren’t perfectly formed and that saving seeds and nurturing them to life the following spring is one of life’s greatest rewards. Nothing feels as good, or gives as much satisfaction as knowing that you are nourishing your child’s body with foods that you have grown yourself. Not only can you feel good about eating, but you can feel good about supporting your neighborhood farmer, your community and the earth and animals.

I have mentioned several times that I am a member of Slow Food USA, and that I am actively seeking five dedicated community members who share my point of view to begin a Convivium here in the Greater Binghamton area. Slow Food USA is part of the International Slow Food movement which compliments my personal mantra, “Live slow…Live well”. Take the time to smell the tomatoes, know where your eggs come from and enjoy the bounty that can come from your own back yard. Slow Food USA feels the same way and I am pleased to support this organization. I am committed to reintroducing our area with its culinary past and rebuilding a dynamic farm to home connection and getting families back into the kitchen and enjoying food the way it is supposed to taste, and feel.

In addition to the proposed Convivium, I am planning an American Tradition’s Picnic (a RAFT based Slow Food initiative) for late summer and producers, food service professionals and community members are welcome and needed. If you would like more information about joining me in a new Convivium or to join us in our American Tradition Picnic, please contact me at 607.330.2750 or by email.

Colleen is a private caterer and personal chef. She lives with her wonderful family on a tiny farm and they raise Heritage breeds of waterfowl, poultry and game birds using 100% organic farming methods and pasturing.

Colleen has a long time love of food, wine, art and design and hosts the internet’s oldest, and favorite resource for the home wine maker at HomeMadeWine.net. Her blog and websites are viewed by thousands each day who enjoy her recipes, photographs and helpful kitchen tips.