by InTrieste
Italy moved a step closer this week to securing UNESCO recognition for its national cuisine, after cultural experts recommended that Italian culinary traditions be added to the United Nations agency’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. A final decision is expected next month.
The bid, jointly advanced by Italy’s ministries of culture and agriculture, highlights the deep connection between Italian food, cultural identity and daily life. Officials have argued that the country’s culinary practices — from regional recipes to family food rituals — represent a distinctive and longstanding cultural asset.
To support the campaign, the government staged a high-profile event in September: an open-air Sunday lunch held in the Roman Forum. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attended alongside the ministers of culture and agriculture, Alessandro Giuli and Francesco Lollobrigida.
Speaking live on the national television program Domenica In, Ms. Meloni described Italian cuisine as a cornerstone of the country’s cultural heritage. “It is one of the most extraordinary things we have,” she said, “expressing our culture, our identity, our tradition, but also our strength.”
Italy already boasts several food-related traditions on UNESCO’s intangible heritage list, including the art of Neapolitan pizza-making and the Mediterranean diet. If approved, the new designation would formally recognize the broader cultural significance of Italian cooking — and further elevate a cuisine long celebrated around the world.
