Carlo Petrini, the founder of the Slow Food movement who dedicated four decades to promoting sustainable food production and traditional cooking, has died at the age of 76 in his Italian hometown, according to the BBC.

From Protest to Global Movement

Petrini founded the movement in 1986 in the countryside with a small group of friends, following protests against the opening of Italy’s first McDonald’s — the movement quickly gained traction across the country and eventually expanded into more than 160 countries, with Petrini serving as its president.

He became friends with King Charles III and the late Pope Francis through his campaigning, according to the organisation. The Slow Food organisation described Petrini as a forward-looking who ‘brought to life a global movement rooted in the values of good, clean, and fair food for all.’

Legacy of a Journalist and Advocate

Italian President Sergio Mattarella said Petrini’s death left a ‘huge void not only in the world of food and wine science, but also in society as a whole, and not just in Italy.’

Petrini, who was a journalist, set up the grassroots movement under the name Arcigola shortly after demonstrations against McDonald’s opening a restaurant in Rome’s Piazza di Spagna. By 1989. The Slow Food Manifesto was signed by over 20 global delegates, pledging to ‘escape the tediousness of fast-food’ by ‘defending old-fashioned food traditions.’.

The movement emphasizes quality, environmental sustainability, and equitable conditions for producers; his work saw him become friends with King Charles, as the pair bonded over their shared beliefs in fresh and sustainable food.

Personal Reflections and Final Years

In 2013, Petrini said he was ‘surprised’ when Pope Francis telephoned him after he had sent him a book and a letter; he told Italian newspaper La Repubblica that their phone conversation ended with ‘wishes of good health and a mutual embrace.’

‘A world in which one can fraternally embrace a Pope is truly a beautiful world,’ Petrini said, but he died on Thursday in Bra, a town in Italy’s north-western Piedmont region, Slow Food said.

The Reuters news agency reported that he had in recent years been diagnosed with cancer, as Petrini’s work connected ‘communities, farmers, food artisans, cooks, activists, and young people across the world,’ the organisation added.