Mumbai gets a slow coach

Two years ago as I walked through the Grant Road vegetable market my eyes fell on a lush green broccoli My hands reached out to touch its rough head when my companion Kavita Mukhi rapped my knuckles ldquoThat is an exotic vegetable which means it is not indigenous to the state and thus not very good for you Restrict to eating it just once a week as it is laden with chemicalsrdquo the econutritionist who initiated the Farmers Market told me handing me a locally produced pumpkin and urging me to smell it That was my first lesson on the importance of consuming local and seasonal produceVisitors dig into organic food at the farmersrsquo market cafeacute last year Last week Slow Food International a global nonprofit organisation founded in Rome to prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions by a journalist named Carlo Petrini in the 1980s launched its Mumbai chapter Slow Food Mumbai SFM mdash drawing attention yet again to take a closer look at the pattern of our food consumption The convivium leader Arina Suchde says the slow food movement aims to get people to go back to the roots of simple and unprocessed food ldquoOur grandparents lived healthier lives than us as they were not victims of lifestyle diseases and processed food We want Mumbai to value where our fruits and veggies are grown and recognise the efforts of the farmers who grow themrdquo she addsPeople go through produce laid out for sale at the farmers market The organisation follows a simple philosophy of good clean and fair choices ldquoHealthy food can be great in taste it should be sourced from a producer who grows his fruits and vegetables in a sustainable manner and for this he should get a fair payment for his efforts The word organic is misused today We prefer to call it natural where it may be produced using minimum quantity of safe chemicalsrdquo says Kumud Dadlani facilitator for Slow Food Mumbai and MaharashtraA buyer stocks his car with plants and herbs for his gardenThe outfitrsquos initial plans include educating people about seasonal produce indigenous grains and local variety of seafood ldquoWe want to start a newsletter that would have profiles of sustainable farmers and what they grow under an initiative called lsquoknow your farmerrsquo We want to focus on cuisine of Mumbai culture history talks and dying foods of the city conduct tasting workshops and involve children through school and community garden projects Connecting with chefs and food personalities for talks and demos is also on the cardsrdquo says Dadlani who has studied at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Italy started by Petrini in 2004Be the changeThe city is not new to the concept of slow food and has seen its fair share of farmersrsquo markets ldquoMumbai has so much diversity when it comes to food but people are obsessed with fast foodrdquo says Dadlani The first step to bringing about change in eating habits is to start asking questions ldquoAsk your vendor what is in season as that is best for you Today fruits from different parts of the world are available at local markets but is it good for you We have green apple available round the year or fruits such as apples and pears from China and New Zealand has anyone thought about the carbon footprints they leave behind and the amount of chemical treatments to ensure they remain lsquofreshrsquo by the time they reach us This is a game of demand and supply They are so popular in the city as the consumers demand itrdquo says Dadlani Currently the Mumbai chapter has five core team members ldquoWe cannot spread the movement on our own we want people to tell us what is wrong join us at events volunteer and share their ideasrdquo explains DadlaniFarm to forkSFM is also looking to partner with likeminded groups and projects Yohaan Dattoobhai founder of Kaboom is one of their first partners For him the organisation is a great platform to raise awareness of the major issues surrounding cultures educate communities on what can be done to inspire change ldquoA year ago when I was looking to do something entrepreneurial I realised that our city lacks access to good quality food at an affordable price According to a USbased research we are the first generation that will raise children who will die at a younger age than us due to the food we consume and the lifestyle we leadrdquo says Dattoobhai Even condiments such as ketchup tahini hot sauce mustard sauce are made from scratch at the restaurant which serves a different cuisine every day ldquoIt requires a little extra effort and cost but is the culture at Kaboom We source our produce directly from farms which helps us save cost and thus we can make the food less expensive for customersrdquo he says Mukhi too has joined hands with the Slow Food Slow Food Mumbai Earth Market which is part of SFM ldquoI attended a Slow Food International event in Italy a few years ago I got the feel of consuming food the oldfashioned way I attended lectures ate lavish not rich meals When you eat good wholesome food you have nothing to lose but illnessrdquo says MukhiThe Farmers Market in Mumbai is now also part of Slow Foods Earth Market network and holds Slow Food events as part of its activitiesDemand more supplyThe common argument is that organic and slow food is more expensive than the regular produce available in the market ldquoIf more people buy local and seasonal go to farmerrsquos market and the demand increases the price will go down To participate in a farmerrsquos market in a city a farmer harvests his crop early Sunday to keep it as fresh as possible and drives all the way to the city Why is the city not respondingrdquo says DadlaniSFM also promotes well procured and stocked meats such as gauthi chicken According to trend reports eggs are the food of the year ldquoThe eggs in Mumbai are full of chemicals while organic eggs or Keggs are a fresher optionrdquo says Dadlani who also plans to streamline the fish markets ldquoEveryone wants to eat pomfret as they consider the oily bangda a poormanrsquos fish and reject the mandel for not clean enough But these are beautiful local fishrdquo she says adding ldquoChildren of farmers who have seen their parents work long hours in the field do not want to continue the legacy Instead they prefer coming to the city to do odd jobs Have you ever thought who will grow our food thenrdquo Dadlani signs off