The canteens at the University of Coimbra (UC) will be celebrating Mushroom Month in November with several initiatives to promote and encourage healthy and sustainable diets, focusing on the consumption of seasonal products. One of the main initiatives will be the introduction of mushrooms to the menu served at UC’s food units, every Wednesday during the month of November.
This initiative is the result of a partnership between the Social Services of the University of Coimbra (SASUC) and the research project Mushrooms ‘From Farm to Fork’: from the treatment of metabolic diseases to healthy sustainable diets based on the valorization of agroforestry resources, led by the University of Coimbra and financed by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR). It aims to reflect on the importance of consuming seasonal foods, produced locally and sustainably, such as mushrooms, as well as encouraging changes in individual behaviour that promote a more sustainable and ecological diet.
The program of activities celebrating Mushroom Month will kick off tomorrow, October 30, with a round table dedicated to sustainable and ecological food, open to the entire community. It will be at D. Dinis Cultural Centre, starting at 11 a.m., with the participation of Rosa Guilherme, head of the Division of Innovation and Support for Agri-food Production of the Center Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDRC); Luís Silva, assistant researcher at Politécnico da Guarda and head of the RedFruit4Health research project; Augusto Nogueira, coordinator of Pinhal Maior – Associação de Desenvolvimento do Pinhal Interior Sul; Sílvia Leão, from the Amanita Bunker project; and Rui Rio, head of the Hygiene and Health Inspection and Food Quality Control Office at SASUC. The openning session will be moderated by Anabela Marisa Azul, researcher at the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology of UC (CNC-UC) and coordinator of the project Mushrooms ‘From Farm to Fork’.
Right after the round table, there will be another edition of the initiative “Fui ver... era Chef!”, launched by SASUC with the main goal of using the kitchen to create new bonds between people in the UC community. In this edition, the meal will be prepared by the Mushrooms ‘From Farm to Fork’ team, with support from the SASUC team. The main ingredientes of the dishes will be various types of mushrooms. The activity is open to the entire community, with associated costs, prior registration is required here.
Between November 4 and 29, another activity will take place: the exhibition Mushrooms ‘From Farm to Fork’, held as part of the Drawing and Composition discipline of the Design and Multimedia course at the University of Coimbra, the result of a partnership between the CNC-UC and the Departments of Computer Engineering and Architecture of the UC Faculty of Science and Technology. “This exhibition presents student reflections on the consumption of mushrooms: on the one hand, their contribution to a balanced diet, reducing the risk of chronic diseases, and supporting healthy longevity; on the other hand, their role in bringing agri-food and forestry systems closer to life cycles in nature”, explains Marisa Azul.
The exhibition can be visited from November 4 to 29 in several food units at the UC: the Yellow Canteen, the Luzio Vaz Canteen, the Polo II Food Complex and the University Stadium Restaurant.
Watch an interview with the project coordinator, Anabela Marisa Azul, here.
Catarina Ribeiro with CNC-UC (text) and Ana Bartolomeu (video).
