Wearing a white baseball cap and sipping a Fanta, Dr. Arduino Tassi, director of the Istituto Superiori di Gastronomia, explains the tenets of slow food.
"It's about paying attention to what you put in your body. Reading labels," he adds, tapping a soda can.
Speaking in precise English, the Fanta-sipping Dr. Tassi conveys an intense belief in the importance of good food. The Slow Food Association, formed in 1987 in France, is committed to quality food, resulting from small-scale production and natural ingredients. Cagli is home to several stores that embody these ideals: the Bottega delle Erbe, Alimentari, and Un Punto Macrobiotico, all of which participated in Venerdi di Cagli.
The increasing success of Cagli's specialty stores reflects a changing town economy. Bottega delle Erbe's story is a prime example. When herborista Patrizia Scaglioni opened her store in 1987, it was a small shop with few customers. There was a small market for the natural products, including whole foods, beauty and home products, that Bottega delle Erbe sells. But as Cagli becomes wealthier and more sophisticated so has Patrizia's business.
"Tastes are changing. People are becoming much more sophisticated," observed Richard Dixon, a British expat and 15-year casa vacance owner.

Venerdi di Cagli is a result of that change. There's a privileged sort of decadence to having an evening celebrating the most elemental of foodstuffs--in this Friday's case, bread.
Written by Kerri-Ann Jennings, Photography and Video by Marissa Norkus and Deirdre Mullins,
Graphic Design and Design Production by Deirdre Mullins