Uma Ulafi: African food and culture by Chef Victoire

 

Milan welcomes back Uma Ulafi for its second edition, a celebration centered around high-end Afro-Caribbean cuisine, honoring the energy of the Earth. At the helm? Chef Victoire Gouloubi. The event is set for May 3rd and 4th in Milan.

 

 

The festival celebrates the Earth, Afro-Caribbean culinary culture, and female talent. Uma Ulafi 2.1, a polyphonic salon open to the world, is set to land in Milan on May 3rd and 4th at the Showroom Vittorio Emanuele in Piazza Baiamonti. Leading the event is the charismatic Victoire Gouloubi, who boasts Congolese roots and has spent over twenty years in Italy. Gouloubi’s extensive experience includes working alongside Michelin-starred chefs and as a talent on Gambero Rosso Channel, in addition to being a personal chef internationally. Her culinary and social mission? To spread, defend, and enhance high Afro-Caribbean cuisine, highlighting its various facets and contemporary expressions.

 

Victoire, determined and tenacious, is proud to bring to Milan sounds, flavors, and knowledge of the black continent, all under the aegis of Uma Ulafi—a Swahili term for ‘greedy fork,’ reminiscent of a pastry fork patented by African-American restaurateur Anna M. Mangin in the late nineteenth century.

The two-day event will feature debates, insights, and reflections. It aims to shed light on innovations, transformations, and evolutions in the African agricultural sector, emphasizing the crucial role of digital technology in combating malnutrition, food insecurity, and climate change, while promoting development, efficiency, and inclusivity.

 

 

The event will demonstrate, both in word and deed, how some women—courageous entrepreneurs, ambassadors, and supporters of rural and gastronomic vanguards in Africa—are leading the way.

These women will be featured speakers at the Milan agora, including figures such as Sandrine Vasselin, CEO of Misao and known as the “Chanel of spices” (especially those from Kivu in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo); Stella Mpoy, co-founder of Kodamer, a luxury African épicerie complete with a library section; Kwanza Musi Dos Santos, specializing in diversity management with a focus on anti-racism and intersectionality; Nyny Ryke Goungou, creator of an ethical fashion brand bearing her name and co-founder of Vivina (which means sweet, tasty, and good in Ewe), a company that imports and distributes high-quality products from Togo; and Fatimata – aka Fati – Niang, who has revolutionized Senegalese street food with her brand Black Spoon and also won the award for Best African Entrepreneur in 2014 in France. Fati is also set to sign off on the gala dinner with a vegetarian attitude on Saturday, May 4th, under the watchful eye of Victoire and hosted by Marilena Umuhoza Delli, an Italian-Rwandan photographer, author, and director, named among the 50 women of the year by D – la Repubblica in 2020 and Community Leader of Change at the Black Carpet Awards by Vogue and Afro Fashion Week Milan in 2023.

Victoire, a talented and award-winning chef, travels the world as a private chef, serving as an ambassador of Afro-Caribbean culture.

 

A journey to discover the continent of sun and rain, desert and forests. A narrative of lands, men, women, products, freedom, and determination.

 

Not forgetting craftsmanship, art, genius, and flair. The opening of Uma Ulafi is dedicated to the docufilm “We are Food,” written and produced by Madame Gouloubi in collaboration with Catania-based director Egle Pappalardo. Additionally, the rich calendar of events and interventions is enriched by an exhibition curated by Jonathan Rodriguez and Lanusa Silva; the presence of an Afro-Italian brand like BB Style; and Baobab, a Senegalese cuisine restaurant in Milan. Meanwhile, Cameroonian designer Eveline Sonya, at the helm of Rossella Haute Couture, will tailor the brigade’s uniforms in a true tribute to the lands of Africa. A meeting between the near and the far, here and elsewhere. Without boundaries or barriers. Indeed, with a special recognition, signed by Pentole Agnelli and Uma Ulafi: the Maisha Award, in honor of Diego Sarchiapone, a young pizzaiolo (who passed away prematurely) raised in Ivory Coast, lived in Guardiagrele, and always a supporter of African crops (and cultures). Handing by the event’s godmother: Raffaella Meledandri, CEO of Air-Dynamic, with twenty years in private aviation.

 

 

A lounge of sharing and awareness, which also boasts the patronage of the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the USFTI (United States Foreign Trade Institute) with Cristina Di Silvio, as well as the support of Ars Italica, Gambero Rosso, the historic Treviso-based Astoria Wines, the bio-architecture hut Bellagio TreeB (bed, balance, and bike) and a Brianza-based reality like Danilo Fumagalli, a reference point in the wholesale trade of fruit and vegetable products for over 70 years, for an intertwining of Made in Italy and Made in Africa.

Uma Ulafi 2.1: https://www.eventbrite.it/e/registrazione-uma-ulafi-concept-alla-scoperta-delle-identita-gastronomiche-afrocaraibiche-753488393067

Enjoy even more @ Uma Ulafi 2.1

Edit by Nadia Toppino, Wine food and Hospitality consultant/Journalist

STORIEDICIBO

Editor @ Monaco Woman