From September 5–7, 2025, the Gudovac Autumn Fair once again became a meeting point for farmers, food producers, families, and rural communities across Croatia and Europe. With 400 exhibitors and more than 35000 people it stood out as one of the country’s most important agricultural and economic gatherings.
This year, the EIT Food Hub Croatia (Smion) brought the FoodUnfolded to Gudovac. The fair’s diverse and rural audience made it a great setting to connect modern food literacy principles with longstanding local wisdom.
A Fair That Brings People Together
Visitors explored exhibitions ranging from renewable energy and livestock shows to forestry innovations, rural tourism, and agri-tech equipment.
Amidst this diversity, the FoodUnfolded stand became a space where tradition and innovation blended, reminding visitors that the way earlier generations approached food was often healthier, wiser, and more sustainable than today’s habits.
Sharing Traditions, Recipes, and Stories
Throughout the three days, visitors shared recipes, customs, and practices passed down through families. These stories revealed a common thread: food was valued, respected, and never wasted. Some highlights included:
- “We make homemade products, ajvar, and traditional recipes from our grandmothers.”
- “Grandma preserved food through traditional methods, and I’m glad she taught me so the tradition can continue.”
- “Everything was used, nothing was thrown away – leftovers went to animals or compost.”
“Bread was baked at home and lasted for a week.” - “The habit was to eat seasonal and local: stuffed peppers in summer, stuffed fermented cabbage leaves in winter.”
- “Meat was eaten only once a week, usually on Sundays.”
Visitors recalled storing and preserving food through traditional methods like fermentation, baking in wood-fired ovens, eating moderately, and living with the rhythm of the seasons.
Many pointed out that their grandparents’ approach to food: seasonal, local, and resourceful, is exactly what modern sustainability advocates encourage today.
Activities and Engagement
At the FoodUnfolded space, visitors were invited to:
- Share their own recipes and food memories.
- Join a knowledge quiz on food and sustainability, with winners receiving local products.
- Reflect on how past practices can inspire today’s food choices.
The atmosphere was lively, interactive, and familiar. People actively contributed knowledge, laughed, and discussed the correct answers to the quiz.
Why It Matters
The International Autumn Fair in Gudovac proved once again that food literacy doesn’t only belong in classrooms or online campaigns. By creating a welcoming space in a rural, community-driven setting, we reached audiences who don’t always engage with urban or digital sustainability initiatives.
The event showed that rural communities already hold much of the wisdom we need today:
Seasonal and local eating.
- Low food waste lifestyles.
- Homemade, healthier meals from scratch.
- Community knowledge-sharing across generations.
By bringing these stories into the spotlight, the FoodUnfolded Rural Edition helped visitors see that their traditions are valuable cultural heritage and the practical solutions for the future.
International Day of Rural Women 2025.
As climate change, resource scarcity, and food insecurity intensify, the strength of rural communities has become a global priority.
As we approach the International Day of Rural Women (October 15, 2025), the International Autumn Fair in Gudovac serves as a reminder of the central role women and rural households play in shaping food systems. Their practices, whether preserving harvests, cooking from scratch, or teaching children respect for food, are important to building a more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive future. Women in rural areas continue to lead families, adapt to new challenges, and keep traditions alive.
