The slow fast-food Mac Bun has established itself in 10 years in Rivoli and Turin as a virtuous example of sustainability in mass catering. A success story that deserves proselytizing.
The true quality of a hamburger
A true, quality hamburger is distinguished first and foremost by the guarantee of traceability and origin of the meat at the restaurant. A crucial piece of news, which in France has been mandatory for 18 years already while in Italy politicians sleep on it. (1)
‘We are convinced that another way is possible. Another way to raise and cultivate, but also another way to feed and enjoy food. (2)
The meat used for Mac Bun ‘s burgers is 100% Made in Italy, from pure Piedmontese Breed cattle fed on local grains and forages, in accordance with the Coalvi Protection Consortium‘s specifications. The meats are produced by the third-generation Scaglia family farm, from which the idea for this slow fast food was born.
‘The right timing in breeding, ripening of crops, storage and cooking of raw materials. This is at the heart of our understanding of catering, slow-fast food that focuses on flavors and nature‘. (2)
Short supply chain, the success of enterprise and territory
The first Mac Bun was opened in Rivoli, Italy, in 2009 and was already an appreciable success. With daily sales of 300 hamburgers made of Piedmontese meat, garnished with Piedmontese cheese. The two establishments subsequently opened in Turin and soon became a landmark for lovers of authentic flavors in the Savoy city. Under the banner of quality in collective catering, the key factors of which we have already emphasized.
Short supply chain animates Mac Bün’s supply-chain, which buys more than 92 percent of its products directly from local producers, without middlemen. This activates a solidarity and participatory system that-aside from guaranteeing farmers a decent income-contributes, in broader terms, to the development of economy and employment in the area. And he participates in various social initiatives of local charities.
Catering and sustainability
Sustainability-increasingly evoked in words, yet offering no news about concrete commitments adopted by individual companies on various fronts-finds tangible application in Mac Bun.
Supply chain integrity is its prerequisite, to which is added Respect for workers (70, with an average age of 35, in the three venues). And the growing focus on packaging sustainability. Sandwiches are wrapped in paper, and disposable tableware is composed of biodegradable and compostable materials. Looking forward to the next step, the replacement of single-use tableware with reusable ones (remembering how Reduce and Reuse are the first two rungs of Lansink’s ladder, also known as the ‘waste hierarchy’). (3)
From Mac Bün to M** Bun, McDonald’s warning.
Mac Bün Slow Fast Food is the trademark at the time filed by Graziano Scaglia–from the cattle-breeding family of Bruere (hamlet of Rivoli)–and his partner Francesco Bianco, founders of the ‘agrihamburgheria. But the Roman attorneys for Corporation McDonald’s-who have little or nothing to do with ‘good, healthy and g(i)usto‘-immediately warned the young entrepreneurs to withdraw their trademark application. (4)
In Piedmontese dialect, Mac means ‘alone, only’ and bün means ‘good.’ ‘Just Good’ is thus the authentic and characteristic meaning of a sign rooted precisely in that territory, which certainly does not aspire to compete with the star-studded fast-food (and junk-food) giant. In any case, in order to avoid unnecessary card-carrying clashes with those who do not even deserve to be associated in any way with the multinational giant, the creators of ‘Just Good’ chose the path of irony.
Then M** Bun, instead of Mac Bün. A simple revolution, even in name. With the hope that many will follow suit. Ça va sans dir, no American meat and no GMO soybeans, to which our #Buycott!! petition should always be addressed, which we urge everyone to sign by following this link.
Dario Dongo and Giulia Caddeo
Notes
(1) GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) has drafted a draft decree by which to introduce the obligation to trace and indicate the origin of meat at restaurants, alongside the Italia Zootecnia Consortium. But the proposal has not yet been considered by successive agricultural policy ministers. V. https://www.foodagriculturerequirements.com/archivio-notizie/origine-carni-bovine-al-ristorante-lo-schema-di-decreto-legge-del-consorzio-l-italia-zootecnica-analisi-di-dettaglio_1
(2) https://www.mbun.it/mondo-mbun/
(3) Some virtuous examples of reuse in mass catering are cited in the previous article https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/imballaggi/plastictax-e-riutilizzo-diatribe-italiane-ed-esempi-in-europa
(4) Beppe Minello.
Mac Bün, hamburger doc challenges giant McDonald’s.
. The Press, 15.10.09,
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
Graduated in law, master in Food, Law & Finance. You have explored the theme of green procurement and urban food policies in the International Cooperation and Peace sector of the City of Turin.
