Between them now Jimmy Ghionehistoric correspondent of Strip the News, loved by the general public also for the commitment shown over the years to the protection and valorization of Italian cuisine and its products. He spoke about the importance of collecting signatures to support the candidacy of Italian cuisine during the episode of Antonio Ricci’s beloved program which aired on January 27th. He did it in a symbolic way, accompanied by president Pecoraro Scanio and Enrico Derflingher, president of the Euro-Toques Italia ed International association, and for years personal chef to Queen Elizabeth II. Together they prepared a risotto with black truffle: a dish that tells the story of the great chef’s cuisine and an example of the harmony of Italian products, PDO and PGI, which characterize each territory of our country with their aromas and flavors.

The uniqueness of the candidacy of Italian cuisine

«The candidacy of Italian Italian cuisine as a UNESCO heritage site is also this: a campaign to valorise the products and traditions of the individual territories. Because its uniqueness also lies in this: in the fact that it is different from country to country, from province to province”, says Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, announcing that there will still be other examples that will tell of this diversity and biodiversity. «Pasta will be the next common thread: it is the most identifying feature of our cuisine in the common imagination and among the ingredients that are best suited to act as a trait d’union to our products, to represent them and therefore to share them.

An inclusive candidacy

Sharing, after all, is the key word behind every application, made to promote an art, a tradition, a culture, so that it is known, appreciated, and once again shared. «The UNESCO nominations are exactly the opposite of a protectionist claim. If we nominated pizza or opera singing it was not to hold on to them, to claim their Italianness, but because they are beautiful things with a global value, explains Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio. «The same is true for the candidacy of Italian cuisine, which we would also like to see valorized by UNESCO for its sustainability and biodiversity, to be the basis of a diet – the Mediterranean one – which has become a food model throughout the world, says the Univerde president. And he continues: «This is why it is important to sign: this candidacy concerns everyone, it is an inclusive path, and I hope it involves people just like it did for pizza.

What would happen if Italian cuisine became a World Heritage Site

Moreover, if UNESCO were to actually accept our proposal, we would all gain, just as has already happened with pizza. «Following the entry of the art of Neapolitan pizza chefs into the world’s heritage, requests for Neapolitan school pizza chefs have multiplied: not Neapolitans of origin, but people around the world who have learned to make pizza following the rules and traditions of Neapolitan art. This would also apply to Italian cuisine: it would be about spreading knowledge, not putting up a fence. Sharing a heritage.” A heritage of history, stories, knowledge, traditions, which involves each of us.
To sign, click on www.change.org.

Other articles from La Cucina Italiana that might interest you:

Opera singing and Italian cuisine: an unparalleled heritage
The candidacy of Italian cuisine for UNESCO: what now?