Kezes-Labos: Festival of Etyek, Hungary

I have never thought this way for the Gastrtonomy and Culture show. I only thought one thing - marketing! But now, Hugary taught me how to also think - in earthly manner as well...

The philosophy and goal of the festival
"Your life is on your table, i.e. the day of copious meals"
September-23-2006

Culture has arisen when mankind settled and brought land into cultivation for the first time. Culture ends when mankind detaches itself from the land.

We have to regain the ability of living in the landscape, instead of dominating over or fighting against it. What we have on our table is reserved to our stomach, but it arrives at our head and inflicts our mind. Synthetic dairy products, puffed-up and tasteless vegetables, decorative but indigestible artificial fruits and the plastic-meat of the cattle nurtured on plastic-fodder … all of them are the wastage of the lifeless soil.

We are searching for the living man in the living landscape, who is longing for the soil, seeking beauty, goodness and delight, and is also able to preserve things of importance. Who is not counting time in pennies. We are searching for the baker whose bread is made of crops, the jam-maker who collects the most beautiful fruit and the cheese-manufacturer who uses full-cream milk. We are searching for the man who tends his environment with the work of his own hands. The chemical basis of dynamite and fertiliser is the same, and they both destruct the soil. The land does not need fertilisers – it needs us.

Fast food, fast death, short life. The path to enjoyable life does not lead through the incredibly overcomplicated meals or shiny luxury restaurants, but through people creating something from the pure soil, enjoying their work. Get to know them to let them get to know you. Try their work and taste the shine of the sun, the flesh of the Earth, the power of the plants, the pleasure of honey, the blood of wine, the body of bread, the fire of distillates, the fat of cheese and feel that the world is created for you and you are created for the world.

This is why we organised this meeting for you.