In a modest hall at the Terra Madre gathering, a handful of chefs and authors listened as the final stories of the “Storie a tavola” competition were read aloud.
The contest, organized by the Coop supermarket chain, invited Italians to submit personal narratives that link food to memory. Entries poured in from every region, and a total of 700 stories were shortlisted for the final round.
Judges evaluated the submissions on how vividly they portrayed culinary traditions and personal heritage. The award ceremony, held during the international Terra Madre event, recognized the top three entries with cash prizes and the opportunity to publish their pieces in a cooperative anthology.
Coop spokesperson Maria Rossi said the initiative aims to preserve Italy’s diverse gastronomic culture and to give ordinary citizens a platform to share their heritage. Participants expressed pride in seeing their family recipes and memories celebrated on a national stage.
Organizers plan to make “Storie a tavola” an annual contest, hoping to expand the collection of oral histories that connect food with identity across generations.