One of the pleasures of traveling in China is that every hamlet seems to boast a unique gastronomic delicacy. What do you mean you haven't tried Fuling's famous pickled mustard tuber, locals will ask in astonishment, or Qingxu's renowned aged vinegar? Didn't I know the latter won a prize at an international fair in Panama back in the 1920s? (I'm afraid I didn't.) Proud residents often hand me a treat to take home. Most recently, in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, I was given a sack of brined duck neck.
I was reminded of China's locavore traditions earlier this month when Alice Waters visited Beijing. The California restaurateur—who revolutionized the American organic, sustainable and locally sourced food movement—was in the Chinese capital as part of a cultural exchange organized by the Asia Society and the Aspen Institute. She complimented China's culinary heritage and the central role eating plays. “Chinese families still gather together for a meal,” enthused Waters, contrasting it to the U.S., where ever greater numbers of obese citizens gulp fast food in their cars.
But the biggest food movement in China today is less locavore than locavoid.
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