Preliminary Assessment Study per il Slow Food Education Centre di Bacolod

Titolo Preliminary Assessment Study per il Slow Food Education Centre di Bacolod

Location Bacolod City, Negros Occidental (Philippines)

Duration October-December 2024

Funding Slow Food

 

Context

The Negros Occidental region has a rich agricultural and gastronomic tradition, but suffers from fragmentation of the food supply chain, low consumer awareness and limited formal food education. Bacolod, with its strong roots in the culture of “good, clean and fair” and a growing interest in sustainable practices, is an ideal location for a centre dedicated to food education and the promotion of local culinary heritage. The Preliminary Assessment Study highlighted both the enthusiasm of stakeholders and the need for a hub capable of coordinating training, research and experiential activities on sustainable food.

 

General Objective

The Circular Innovation & Sustainable Commodities Unit was involved in assessing the feasibility and relevance of a Slow Food Centre in Bacolod capable of:

  • raising public awareness of sustainable food systems;
  • integrating principles of agroecology and biodiversity into local training courses;
  • promoting collaboration between farmers, restaurant operators, educational institutions and communities.

 

Our contribution

Starting in October 2024, we launched an engagement process to understand and enhance the dynamics of the Bacolod food system. Beginning with the identification of key stakeholder categories, a total of over 200 people were involved in data collection and direct discussion activities.

To gain a deeper understanding of the perspectives of farmers, chefs and local policy makers, we organised dedicated focus groups in the field. At each meeting, we guided the discussion by encouraging the sharing of needs, expectations and critical issues: from obstacles in the logistics of raw materials to prospects for agricultural diversification. These discussions proved fundamental in highlighting the traditional practices that form the heart of the local gastronomic culture and in identifying the potential of an educational centre dedicated to the sustainable development of the area.

At the same time, we administered online questionnaires to a sample of about thirty participants in each category in order to obtain comparable data on training needs, professional aspirations and perceptions of local opportunities. The responses, aggregated and analysed, provided a quantitative framework to support the observations that emerged in the focus groups. Finally, through semi-structured interviews conducted in local markets and university campuses, we explored in depth the mechanisms of interaction between actors in the supply chain and identified specific barriers that penalise the spread of agroecological practices.

Thanks to this mix of qualitative and quantitative tools, we were able to outline an extremely detailed picture of the strengths of the Bacolod context – a deep-rooted gastronomic tradition, established food and wine festivals and favourable local policies – and the critical issues to be addressed urgently, including the absence of dedicated training courses and the need to create more efficient and resilient value chains. These elements formed the basis for our project proposals, designed to create a Slow Food Centre capable of integrating training, research and demonstration activities directly in the local area.

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