Paper short abstract:

Paper long abstract:

In Poland, rural development efforts by local, EU-funded groups often focus on traditional and regional food products as a means for providing additional income to households and enhancing a region's profile. This ethnographic case study explores the revival of the tradition of cooking plum jam (powidła śliwkowe) in the Lower Vistula Valley in north-central Poland as a focal point for creating a new regional identity and brand. In the process, however, fissures become evident in the social fabric as producers follow diverse motivations and conflicts erupt over the future of rural development in the region.