Slow Fish Challenge

Slow Food has been raising awareness of the
critical situation facing our seas through the
biennial Slow Fish event for some years, as
well as through projects to support small-scale,
sustainable fishing communities. With this campaign,
‘sustainable fish’ becomes a focus for the entire
Slow Food and Terra Madre network and a theme
for events and activities being held in communities
all around the world.

Slow Fish Challenge invites Slow Food members,
food communities, cooks, academics and young
people in the Terra Madre network to organize
small activities dedicated to sustainable fish
(tastings, dinners, workshops…) and to send
information about their fish choice and the
recipe used to prepare it. All of these examples
will be put together to form an online cookbook
of good, clean and fair fish and seafood from
around the world. 

The guidelines to Slow Food Challenge are: 

1. Find the right fish:
Avoid endangered fish such as Bluefin tuna,
Atlantic salmon and farmed salmon, tropical
shrimps, swordfish etc.
Choose local fish, i.e. caught in seas or rivers
near to you.
Ensure your fish is of the minimum size necessary
to reproduce (there are fish such as Orange Roughy
which only reach the age of reproduction at 20 years!)
Use fish in season, i.e. species which are outside
of their reproduction period,

2. Choose a recipe:
A traditional recipe 
A recipe invented by you, which might become the
tradition of tomorrow.

3. Cook this fish at home, in your restaurant or
canteen, share it with friends, customers,
journalists etc.
Explain to your table companions why you have
chosen this fish and why you ignored other species.
Your recipe will be an opportunity to celebrate,
marked by conviviality and a small but significant
gesture of responsibility.
A truly political act—to save our seas.

4. Send Slow Food information you have collected 
about this fish (its characteristics, how, where and when
it is caught…) and your recipe,
as well as any photos,
fishermen’s tales or other materials. 

The Slow Fish Challenge will be taking place
over the next three months
– May, June, July –
and everyone
has until August 15
to send their recipes to 
communication@slowfood.com