Mountain Agrifood Products and Creators Market & Gastronomy Workshops

Friday 25 September 2026 | Omodos | 10:00–22:00
Saturday 26 September 2026 | Omodos | 10:00–21:00

Organised by: MountMed Institute

Scientific design and oversight: Dr Athanasios Tziamourtas, Professor of Exercise Biochemistry

Gastronomy programme design and curation: Evi Chioti, Executive Chef, President of Disciples Escoffier Cyprus, International Culinary Judge, and Consultant in Food Culture and Sustainable Gastronomy

Gastronomy team:

• Andreas Andreou, Executive Chef

• Brian Mark Petrie, Executive Chef

• Yiannis Liapakis, European Young Chef 2025

• Eleni Georgiou, Chef Pâtissier

• Evi Chioti, Executive Chef

• Evriviadis Nicolaou, Executive Chef

• Marcello Zaccaria, Executive Chef, member of the Italian Chefs Federation and ambassador for Italian gastronomic heritage

• Marilena Ioannidou, Chef

• Stavros Georgiou, Chef

• Triantafyllos Souliotis, Executive Chef – Specialist in Contemporary Cypriot Gastronomy

Traditional cooks and dough makers

• Chrysoula Michael, Traditional Cook

• Stavroula Theodotou, Traditional Dough Maker, Omodos

Clinical dietitians and nutritionists

• Margarita Iakovou, Clinical Dietitian

• Angela Angelidou, Clinical Dietitian–Nutritionist

Tasting

• Dimitris Taliotis, Olive-oil Expert

• Iraklis Christoforou, Sommelier, Vice-President of the Cyprus Sommeliers Association (CY SOMMS)

Women’s and cultural associations

• Larnaca Rural Women’s Association

• Koilani Women’s Cultural Association

• Vouni Women’s Group

• Kampos Women’s Group

Local small-scale enterprises and home-based businesses

• Salatas Dairy, Pachna – halloumi making

• Androniki Dairy, Agia Marina Xyliatou – yoghurt making

• ‘Rebecca’ Commandaria Winery, Agios Mamas

• ‘KAFKALIA’ family cured-meat business, Agros

• ‘Fotini’ Arkatena of Omodos, Omodos

• ‘Chrysolofitissa’ Bakery and Patisserie

• ‘The Bread Guy’, Treis Elies
  

Wineries

• Rebecca Winery, Agios Mamas

• Hadjicharalambous Winery, Koilani

• Monolithos Winery, Pachna

• Santiago Winery, Evrychou

Institutional support: Disciples Escoffier Cyprus, Cyprus Sports Organisation

The two-day programme at a glance

Taste, Move & Thrive is the gastronomy and agri-food programme of Mountain Games Cyprus 2026. For two days, Omodos becomes an open setting for flavour, knowledge, culture, movement, participation and hospitality. The Mountain Agrifood Products and Creators Market, experiential gastronomy workshops, thematic discussions, tastings, family activities, and music and dance events showcase Troodos products, local techniques, community memory, and the close relationship between food and place.

Connection with MountMed’s work

This thematic strand is the public expression of MountMed’s ongoing programme of research and action on mountain agriculture and the agri-food systems of Troodos. Its design stems from the Institute’s systematic work to document and promote the quality, distinctive identity and added value of mountain agri-food products; advance the agroecological transition; connect producers’ knowledge and experience with scientific knowledge, as well as primary production with gastronomy; and strengthen small producers and local value chains.

Through projects, partnerships and European networks, MountMed seeks to contribute to the development of a healthy, competitive, fair and resilient agri-food system, grounded in sustainable agroecosystems and a strong primary sector. The Troodos Agriculture Reconstruction Plan, the Rural Academy, TAPELINE and MountMed’s participation in the AGROECOLOGY Partnership, for example, connect regenerative practices and the agroecological transition with producer training and with the quality, identity and added value of products. Taste, Move & Thrive brings this approach into the field, creating direct encounters among producers, home-based enterprises, traditional cooks, chefs, scientists and the public.

Within this approach, the emblematic products and gastronomic heritage of Troodos are connected with the Mediterranean diet, health, sustainability and quality of life. Under the central message Healthy Lifestyles for All, food is treated as part of an active lifestyle, while movement is expressed through Competitive Orienteering, the Taste and Heritage Route, the experiential walk through Omodos and the Dance Encounter of the Mountain Games community of partner organisations.

What it offers

• Mountain Agrifood Products and Creators Market – a direct encounter between the public and the people and products of the mountains

• Gastronomy workshops – experiential learning ‘from field to plate’, with chefs, traditional cooks and dough makers, nutritionists and producers

• Thematic discussions – the Mediterranean diet, sustainable production, authenticity, quality and community resilience

• Movement and participation – competitive orienteering, a walking route of taste and heritage, and a public dance encounter

• Family and creative activities – bread and sourdough, crafts, clay, basketry and participatory learning

• Zero-waste cuisine – traditional techniques for preserving and making full use of products, together with zero-waste and circular-management practices

• Food and wine pairing – a live cooking demonstration using seasonal products, presentations by local wineries and wine tasting, and the sale of local wines and Commandaria.

The approach – ‘From Field to Plate’

All activities are linked through a single five-stage narrative:

origin → technique → nutritional value → participation → connection with the community

Traditional cooks and dough makers, as custodians of Troodos’s gastronomic heritage, meet chefs, scientists and producers. The public does more than simply observe: it learns, tastes, participates and recognises the relationship between tradition, contemporary knowledge and everyday health choices.

Value for Producers, the Region and Partners

For Producers

Direct visibility and links with chefs, the public and international platforms; promotion of PDO/PGI products, local products and elements of intangible cultural heritage.

For the Region and Partners

Connecting sport, health, gastronomy and culture; strengthening low-impact tourism, public participation and the local identity of Troodos.

International dimension: the strand connects with European policies and initiatives, including Farm to Fork and HealthyLifestyle4All, and draws on the participation of the partner organisations of Mountain Games Cyprus 2026.