From Italian cuisine recently registered with UNESCO to the great world gastronomic heritages, the complete list of recognitions
The inscription of Italian cuisine on the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage marks a historic transition. In fact, it is not a simple addition to the list of recognized gastronomic traditions, but the first case in which an entire national culinary culture is protected in its entirety. The Italian victory is not linked to specific recipes, products or rituals: at the center is the idea that cooking and eating are acts of care, relationship and hospitality, a common language that unites very different territories and has its roots in rural tradition and popular everyday life. So let’s see what they are, in addition to the kitchen, the other UNESCO intangible cultural heritage sites linked to gastronomy, in Italy and around the world.
Because Italian cuisine is uniqueto the world
Unlike other heritages linked to food, Italy does not offer a dish or a codified ritual, but a complex cultural system, in which technique, history and conviviality are intertwined. UNESCO thus recognizes a way of life, not just a way of cooking: the meeting between local traditions, the centrality of seasonality, attention to quality and the family transmission of knowledge. A way of being and doing, a way of conceiving gastronomy, therefore wins. This is something much deeper than a single recipe, however good it may be on the palate.
The five Italian intangible heritages dedicated to food
With the new registration, Italy strengthens its global gastronomic leadership. The Italian gastronomic heritages already present are: la Mediterranean diet (2010, transnational recognition), theArt of the Neapolitan pizza chef (2017), the Searching and digging for truffles (2021) and the Pantelleria sapling vine (2014). In the case of pizza, for example, the skill of Neapolitan pizza chefs lies precisely in modeling two basic elements such as water and flour, among the characteristic raw materials of the Mediterranean diet (a heritage in itself). They are all recognitions that enhance knowledge and practices that unite culture, territory and local communities. Now, with Italian cuisine as a whole, the national gastronomic mosaic receives recognition that celebrates diversity, history and everyday creativity.
The other gastronomic heritages recognized by UNESCO in the world
International examples show how different the Italian candidacy is. At this time, the inscriptions already present in the UNESCO list refer to specific culinary traditions or regional food rites, and not to the entire national cuisine. The French gastronomic meal enhances the codified sequence of courses and the art of the table; there traditional Mexican cuisine it is recognized for its nutritional richness and age-old techniques; The Washoku Japanese enhances freshness, seasons and connection with the holidays. Added to these are a long series of practices such as kimchi Koreanit street food in Singaporethe preparation of Turkish unleavened breadthe Ftira MalteseThe arabic coffeeand even iconic products like the baguettes French.
The list of UNESCO food heritage sites from 2020 to today
Let’s see together the complete list of gastronomic-themed UNESCO heritage sites from 2020 to today, to understand even better how these are awards for a specific region or recipe, and not for the entire national cuisine.
2020:
- Il-Ftira, culinary art and culture of flattened sourdough bread in Malta
- Knowledge, know-how and practices relating to the production and consumption of couscousAlgeria – Mauritania – Morocco – Tunisia
2021:
- Ceebu Jëna culinary art from Senegal, Senegal
- Joumou soupHaiti
- Truffle hunting and harvesting in Italy, traditional knowledge and practices
2022:
- Ukrainian cuisine culture of borschtUkraine
- Social practices and knowledge relating to the preparation and use of the traditional plum brandy – šljivovicaSerbia
- Traditional processing techniques tea and associated social practices in ChinaChina
2023:
- Al-Man’ouchéan emblematic culinary practice, Lebanon
- The dish Harees: know-how, skills and practices, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates
- Practices and meanings associated with the preparation and consumption of cevichean expression of traditional Peruvian cuisine, Peru
2024:
- Arabic coffee as a symbol of generosity
- The culture of breakfast in Malaysia: a culinary experience in a multi-ethnic society
- Cooking and eating Mulgi pudertraditional mashed potatoes with barley from the Mulgimaa region of Estonia
- Traditional knowledge and practices for the production and consumption of cassava breadCuba
- Traditional methods of production of Minas artisanal cheese in Minas Gerais, Brazil
The strength of Italian gastronomy
The strength of Italian cuisine lies not only in its dishes, but in the place and way in which food is prepared and shared. The table, for Italians, is a daily ritual of conviviality: between one bite and another they transmit values, taste and cultural identity. Favored by a generous nature, Italy has been able to preserve its gastronomic richness over the centuries, transforming it family traditions into national symbols.
Each region, with its history and landscape, has developed a unique cuisinecapable of describing the territory through ingredients and recipes. This diversity makes up an unparalleled culinary mosaic, in which each dish becomes the narrative of a territory. It is on this basis that the Mediterranean dietrecognized by UNESCO in 2010 as intangible heritage: more than a diet, a true lifestyle based on quality, hospitality and respect for biodiversity. And Italy, with its thousand-year-old tradition, is its cornerstone.
