Project DISC and Slow Food Mukono Convivium Celebrate Terra Madre day 13th Dec 2009.

Slow Food Mukono and Project Disc Celebrates Slow Food Day 2009
“where did you manage get this Kind of food?” Who remembered how to make this kind of Juice?” Many people where asking such a question during the exhibition and eating locally when cerebrating the beauty of the Earth. The truth is - people are forgetting about their "original" food. This was discovered when project DISC and Slow Food Mukono was cerebrating eating locally on slow food Terra Madre day on 13th Dec 2009. Slow Food Mukono and project disc had more than 60 species of Food from The Ugandan Cultural Diversity. And over 250 people attended the event and among these included Local politicians, individual farmers, Farmer’s groups, Schools, Restaurant owners, Local cooks, teachers, individuals who included also Old people who helped in Local Food recognition , Thanks to Mr. Wali Christopher, Mr. Walusimbi and Ms Nakubulwa one of the our elders who helped us in the selection of Local food. "The world needs slow food, we need to have pride in our local food so lets rise up together today to see the goodness in our local food" said Rogers, the assistant coordinator for Project DISC During his speech. The chief celebrant was the Local Council III (Ntenjeru Sub County) Chairman Mr. Nsubuga Fred
Thanks to Slow food president Carlo Petrin and all the Slow food members around the Earth for letting this happen. Among the Local food eaten in include in their local names:- Baluggu, ensujju (pumpkin), eniina (Small African wild Tomatoes), ensusuti, kivuuvu, kaama (Wild Yams), ekkobe, omubisi (Banana Juice), nakkati (African eggplnts), enswa (White Flying ants), amayuni (Wet land Yams), a matooke (Bananas), ebbuga (Red Amaranth), katunkuma (Bitter egg plants), entutunu and others. We are very happy to celebrate this day.
Farmers after this celebration promised to save The Beauty of the earth by saving our local food and eating it.
"Celebrate the Beauty of the Earth, Eat Local food" This was our Theme of the day

"In Their Words"

"My children do not want to miss school these days because of the supplementary fruits given during lunch from their gardens at school"

Mrs. Viola Kato from Bunyama village commented

"We have registered an increase in school attendance especially for Agriculture class since our school joined project DISC, children have increased".

Mr. Kyobe John Agriculture teacher at St. Balikuddembe Senior School Mukono Said

"I did not know how goose berries taste but now I have tasted them today so I am going to have a bigger garden at home than the one at school"

. Nalweyiso Jovia a pupil at St. Andrew’s Primary School said during project DISC juice party in April 2009

"I have realized the juice made by hands tastes sweeter than the ones from this machine (Juice Blender). Now my children also need to know this"

Ms. Noel Nannyunja a teacher at Buiga sunrise pre-school said during the Easter Fruit and Juice party in April 2009

"My son surprised me with a “Luwombo”(traditional sauce made from steamed chicken in Banana leaves) dish he learned to prepare at Sun rise pre-school during the project DISC workshop"

Ms Nakiberu Flavia said in a meeting with DISC parents.

"I just want to thank project DISC and Slow food for thinking about the future. We re getting old and children do not want to produce food. Then who will feed them and their children. Thanks for teaching these boys and girls to control food production. At least now I know they will have food"

Mr. Eliazari Magala an elderly parent said

DISC Conducts Sensory Education Class at Buiga Sunrise Pre School

Report by Rogers Serunjogi, Project Assistant and Teacher Buiga Sunrise Pre-school Banda

Buiga sunrise Pre-School is one of the most active disc project schools and role models, the children rage with age from 3 – 6years old.

The Director of studies included a sensory education class in their lesson plans as requested by the project DISC coordinator; children were introduced to some of the fruits and vegetables they grow in their school DISC garden.

After harvesting some fruits, they made up a sensory education class including taste and smell lesson where students were given plastic cups covered with paper and then fruits in side to find out the smell of the fruit in a particular plastic cup.

How it was made….

Materials

· Fruits in variety

· Small plastic cups

· Paper

· Rubber bands

· And a sharp pencil

· Knife

Procedure followed

• Fruits were cut in small pieces before students are introduced to the learning center.

• Then pieces of different fruits put in different plastic cups.
• Covered with paper and rap with rubber bands around to keep the fruits un-seen.
• Then using a sharp pencil, small holes were created through the papers on top of the cups.
• All the remaining fruits were kept away for the next step of tasting.
• The children were called for briefing to the Learning Center.
• Students started smelling on the cups to find out the type of fruit in a particular cup through the [paper holes created)
• We made sure all fruits are ripe enough for the students to get the natural fruit smell.

After the smelling activity, Children were introduced to taste education and were given paper plates and a pencil to draw what they would like to taste. And funny pictures were received but we managed to figure out what they were meaning. So the already prepared fruits we remained with were brought back and supplied them to our children to enjoy the real taste. Believe me there are those who drew food on the plates which needed cooking. This group was taken to the Kitchen with recipes and they did prepare the food them selves under the supervision of Dembe catering group a cooking community for old women in Slow food Mukono Convivium.

We had fun, shout and Laughs at the event. This does not stop here, it goes on and on in as many schools and regions as we can.

You want to try this out? please do. Your students will discover and understand the real natural fruit smell and hear you will have known if all your students have a well developed sense of smell and Taste.