( - promoted by Jill Richardson)
I should preface this post by admitting that as a vegetarian, I was skeptical of attending the Slow Food Nation event this weekend in San Francisco. I prefer to promote the idea that we should eat less meat, because I don't believe that the world can maintain its current meat-eating habits on locally-produced animal products.
But there is still much common ground, and I support eating locally, shop at my farmers market, and just love everything about fresh produce. So I decided to spend Sunday afternoon at the Civic Center, roaming around the Victory Garden and other festivities. Upon arrival, I was impressed with the large crowds, array of booths, and the garden was lovely.
While it was great to see so many people there, it was also almost impossible to get close to many of the farmer booths, especially those giving out free food samples. But that's not my gripe. I was perfectly willing and eager to pay for some prepared food on the other side of the plaza. But when my partner and I went looking for something to eat, we could find nothing. Every single booth we saw was selling another kind of dead animal. (He called it "carcass row.")
So I went over to the information booth and asked if they knew of anybody selling vegetarian food. The sympathetic Slow Food Nation rep said, no, she didn't see anything either, and since she was vegetarian, understood our plight. She said that other people had also complained, so the feedback would be duly noted for next time.
We did finally find some bread to go with our cucumber, and enjoyed some nice pear juice on the lawn, on a glorious day. But it still felt like a slap in the face. I know of several local vegetarian restaurants that would have been thrilled to have been there. (And yes, some do source their ingredients locally.) It's also not a great way to bring in new supporters. There are many people who believe in the precepts of slow food, but who choose not to eat meat. We are doing our part to save the planet by eating lower on the food chain. To exclude vegetarians does not help build the movement. At the information booth, they were trying to sign up new members. I will wait until next year to see if they heard the feedback.
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