Slow Food is an international non-profit organization that was founded in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world.

Today Slow Food has more than 83,000 members in 107 countries around the world.

We believe that the food we eat should taste good; that it should be produced in a clean way that does not harm the environment, animal welfare or human health; that its producers should receive fair remuneration for their work.

Slow Food is a network of producers and co-producers. Food producers are a key part of our movement and very much the inspiration for what we do.

We are co-producers, not consumers, because we bring more to the table than just our appetites. We want to know the people who make our food, know how they make it and what challenges they face in bringing it to us.

We stand behind food producers who care about quality.

What is a local Slow Food group?

A local Slow Food group is the heart of Slow Food in the UK. Each group has its own particular characteristics, according to the area covered and the people who come together to make it work. The leader and committee are elected by the members and the activities reflect the members' interests and the opportunities afforded by the particular location. We are all volunteers doing things in our spare time so every group is different! There are over 50 groups throughout the UK and the number is growing fast.

What do groups do?

Events: themed dinners, tastings, visits to vineyards, farms and special markets, taste workshops, talks and demonstrations. We often take part in local food-related events to provide information about the Slow Food movement. Most parts of the UK are home to independent food and drink producers and suppliers who are passionately committed to quality and good, clean and fair food.

Education: Many groups are developing links with schools, sometimes in conjunction with other organisations, to encourage the development of school gardens (with produce being used for school meals) or the use of local produce, cooked on the premises, to reduce food miles and to provide a tastier and healthier alternative to industrially-produced meals.