Last October, I participated in a training course within an international project called Foodback. I am Simone Lollini, a socio-educational animator, and I work on European projects for the association Kora. But what is Foodback? And more importantly, what is a socio-educational animator? Let’s start with the latter term, which gives its name to a profession that, for a long time, did not have a proper definition in Italian. To understand this professional sector, it may help to know that until a few years ago, the term “youth worker” was used, literally meaning someone who works with young people. As of today, the category of socio-educational animation identifies all educational activities where the active participation of young people plays a key role, in contrast, for example, to frontal and passive education (such as school and university education).
Foodback, on the other hand, is a three-year project funded by the European Commission with the main objective of developing entrepreneurial skills among young people from different countries in the food production and processing sector, with a particular focus on environmental sustainability and circular economy. The project aims to place consumers and producers back at the center of the food chain, allowing them to regain control over what ends up on our tables. The project involves non-profit associations from various countries, including Spain, Germany, Estonia, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Jordan, and Morocco. The coordinating association for the project is Italian, based in Passignano sul Trasimeno: the social promotion association Kora.
So far, Foodback has brought socio-educational animators from various participating associations to visit local realities in their respective countries. During these visits, there was an opportunity to observe small and large enterprises that can serve as inspiration for innovative practices in both environmental and entrepreneurial aspects.
Within this framework, a training course took place from October 14 to 26 at the La Buona Terra agricultural company. Representatives from different associations met to initiate the next phase of the project, which involves the implementation of free workshops engaging local young people who have a business idea but do not know how to realize it. It is believed that everyone has a more or less active role in the food chain, and the hope is that new entrepreneurs can understand the responsibility of creating companies with certain ethical and environmental values.
During the training course, the international group also had the opportunity to visit some entrepreneurial realities in the area involved in the agri-food sector, observing successful companies up close and learning their secrets. Regarding production and processing, in Magione, the youth visited the Molini Fagioli, part of a business group that produces a significant portion of the quality flours used throughout Italy. In the livestock sector, there was a visit to the Moretti farm in the Piandimarte area, famous for its extensive breeding and particularly interesting in terms of ecology for the reuse of waste materials for energy production. For distribution, the group visited the Cancelloni Food Service company in Magione, observing the organization of products, the different services offered (distribution, as well as processing of raw materials and packaging), and the work of sales agents.
Finally, the young participants had the opportunity to taste local products, especially various olive oils from Trasimeno, at the La Badiaccia restaurant in Castiglione del Lago. Activities will resume in January 2024 when workshops will be organized in Passignano sul Trasimeno (and simultaneously in other partner countries of the project). Socio-educational animators will guide young people step by step towards creating complete and professional business plans. The most deserving individuals will also have the opportunity to travel abroad to participate in job shadowing experiences in the various countries involved.
Simone Lollini
