On February 10th, our HQ visited Lyon City Hall to attend the 4th edition of “En Terroirs Connus”, a dynamic event that connects food professionals and promotes short supply chains.
The En Terroirs Connus meetings bring together local producers, artisans, restaurateurs, and food retailers for a morning of structured, fast-paced exchanges. Designed as a series of “speed meetings”, the event creates valuable opportunities for stakeholders across the local and regional food chain to connect and build lasting partnerships.
Around thirty producers and artisans representing sectors such as fruits and vegetables, meat, dairy, wine, and honey meet with restaurant professionals through a series of pre-scheduled 15-minute discussions. Each edition hosts nearly 220 meetings, fostering concrete collaborations rooted in proximity, traceability, and sustainability.
Beyond the numbers, the event reflects a shared ambition: to strengthen local food systems, support regional producers, and reduce the environmental impact of food distribution. It is a powerful illustration of how dialogue and collaboration can translate into tangible action.
Inspired by Brussels’ Good Food Speed Dating initiative, itself born from discussions within the Food Capitals network, the event illustrates how ideas shared between Food Capitals cities can evolve into concrete initiatives that strengthen local food ecosystems and farm-to-table collaborations.
Participating in initiatives like En Terroirs Connus reinforces the importance of connecting local actors and encouraging short supply chains as key drivers of sustainable urban development, a great preview of the "Food Policies for the Future" theme of our 2025 AGM, which will be held in Lyon in June.
We are always inspired by these moments of exchange, where passion for food meets concrete solutions. They offer valuable insights that we are proud to share with our member cities, continuing to learn, connect, and build more resilient and sustainable food ecosystems together.
