At the start of the truffle harvesting season, the International Conference ‘The truffle between nature and culture. Past, present and future of a versatile resource’ is held in Alba.
The event takes place from September 22 to 24 at Via Cavour 4 (Palazzo Banca d’Alba) and at the Castello di Grinzane Cavour and is coordinated by Professor Irma Naso, who chairs the CeSA Study Center for the history of food and material culture.
Truffle, a delight for the wealthy
The truffles ‘delicacies are of the tables‘, wrote the Turin academic Giovanni Bernardo Vigo in a Latin poem published in Turin in 1776: the tubera terrae, drawn from the deep womb of the earth ‘where it nourishes and hides them‘, arrive on rich and sumptuous tables ‘luxuriously set‘ to delight the lavish feasts.
A profusion of expressions that designate the fragrant underground fungus as a precious and sought-after product, accessible only to wealthy people.
A product of excellence
History and tradition perpetuate its image as a product of excellence and a symbol of the gastronomy of many areas of the Peninsula: starting from the highly renowned area of Langhe, Roero and Monferrato.
Beyond its use at the table, characterized by the classic rituality that helps exalt its myth, the truffle represents a multifaceted resource with unconventional aspects, much less known outside the circle of experts.
The truffle beyond stereotypes
The conference international takes place not by chance precisely coinciding with the opening of the season dedicated to the search and harvesting of the truffle: a traditional practice that unites men, dogs, trees and territories, recently included by UNESCO among the intangible cultural heritage to be protected.
Scholars and academics High-profile figures have been invited to outline an unpublished history of the truffle, beyond stereotypes. And to talk about perspectives, practices, symbolic representations, languages, regulations, economic impacts around the truffle, starting with food and wine tourism, but not only.
The program
Authoritative scientists will reveal that ‘invisible world beneath us’, which lives in symbiosis with the roots of many higher plants. A hidden life to be protected and enhanced in terms of biodiversity, to increase the resilience of woods and forests in the presence of climate change, extreme events, and parasites: because the relationships existing in the rhizosphere are essential for the health of trees, which in turn is essential for the balance and future of the planet.
The program is described in this poster.
How to participate
Access to the Conference venues is free, but registration is recommended https://centrostudicesa.org/2022/07/22/tartufo/
The event also has the patronage of the Academy of Medicine of Turin.
