Cerealia 2025 - The Cereal Festival

The 15th edition of the international festival Cerealia. The cereal festival. Ceres and the Mediterranean will take place from September 20 to October 31, 2025. The festival, organized by the non-profit cultural association Music Theater International – M.Th.I. ETS, is characterized by an interdisciplinary approach that unites culture, food, the environment, and sustainable tourism.

This year's theme is "Flavors and Knowledge of the Mediterranean: for Sustainable Food between Tradition, Innovation, and Inclusion", with an international focus on cooperation and cultural exchange between Italy and Mediterranean Africa and the Middle East. This year, the event takes on special significance thanks to the prestigious recognition received from the President of the Republic: a dedicated and personalized medal marking the festival's fifteenth anniversary, minted by the Italian Mint upon the decision of the Quirinale Palace.

Cerealia 2025 features over 40 events—not counting the various events that preceded the festival in June-August—both in Rome and in seven Italian regions (Lazio, Sicily, Lombardy, Piedmont, Puglia, Calabria, and Basilicata). These events highlight the participatory dimension of this festival, which promotes cultural and scientific dissemination, the connection between territories and communities, and the rediscovery of customs and traditions based on respect for the land and its fruits, as well as Italy's tangible and intangible cultural heritage. The program includes guided tours, nature excursions, tastings of sustainable and local products, meetings and conferences, workshops for children and families, artistic performances, and exhibitions. Also noteworthy is the rich program of initiatives promoted by CREA for Cerealia this year. Also noteworthy is the festival's collaboration with the FAO on the occasion of its 80th anniversary.

Cerealia is a festival dedicated to all grains, and in this sense draws on the ancient rites of the Vestal Virgins and the Ludi of Ceres celebrated in ancient Rome. Broadly speaking, the festival extends to the countries of the Mediterranean basin, hence the subtitle "Ceres and the Mediterranean." The ancient rituals of the Vestal Virgins and of the Ludi of Ceres, reenacted in theatrical form, constitute the ancient element that characterizes each edition of the festival and represents the link with the classical world. The connection with the Mediterranean also gives the event an international dimension, enhancing intercultural exchange and twinning the festival with a different country each year. The Mediterranean has indeed been, and continues to be, a meeting point for many peoples, belonging to similar yet diverse cultural systems: cultural pluralism has been a defining characteristic of the Mediterranean basin since ancient times. The event therefore aims to be not only a moment of historical reenactment, but also, and above all, a moment of cultural exchange, addressing issues such as nutrition, the environment, the economy, and the territory, also in light of the significant nutritional, social, and economic value of cereals.

The event aims to raise awareness of the importance of the land and indigenous cultures in collective culture, reconnecting the production area with the consumer's table, and rediscovering ancient customs and traditions rooted in respect for the land and its fruits. Last but not least, the festival aims to promote the sharing of common challenges among the peoples bordering the Mare Nostrum, stimulating the development of sustainable circular economy models and embracing the 17 SDGs of the UN 2030 Agenda, with a participatory approach that enhances the concerns of civil society, while respecting and safeguarding the Mediterranean ecosystem.

The program, which includes free and reservation-only activities, can be found on the festival website >www.cerealialudi.org

Photo: Facebook official page of the event