“On the other hand, however,” Farinetti pointed out, “we Italian consumers ought to be a tad more cultured, to recognise our heritage, our cuisine based on just a few ingredients, and our excellent produce. On the Italian consumer’s side, however, there is a failure to explore their own roots, and a tendency to eat fried chicken rather than a nice slice of salami and a bit of chilled wine.”
Finally, according to Farinetti, “there are bureaucratic rules which mean that running a pub today has become a missionary endeavour. Meanwhile, the big multinationals – especially the American ones – are extremely adept at cutting costs, and they come to the most beautiful country in the world, to the places frequented by tourists, to promote their business model. We need to save Italy’s taverns through legislation that treats them as part of Italy’s cultural heritage,” he concluded.
Sestriere, la Via Lattea punta sul turismo tutto l’anno
Trentino Mountaineering Society: ‘Cultural homogenisation’
“The arrival of multinational fast-food chains on the ski slopes may well represent a further step towards the cultural homogenisation of the tourist offering. Nothing against fried chicken, of course, but are we sure this is the problem we should be most concerned about? What leaves us far more perplexed is the prospect of building wellness centres and swimming pools at an altitude of two thousand metres, within facilities originally designed to accommodate hikers. After a summer in which we repeatedly discussed the difficulties of water supply to mountain huts, it seems at the very least contradictory to envisage new facilities that require further consumption of water, energy and other resources. Perhaps we should be more outraged by this, rather than focusing all our attention on what is served on the ski slopes.”
This was stated by Cristian Ferrari, president of SAT, the Trentino Mountaineering Society – which, at 150 years old, is the oldest in Italia – in relation to the arrival, from 5 December, of the KFC fast-food chain on the slopes of Madonna di Campiglio and Cortina.
“This is not about calling into question the tourism industry or freedom of enterprise, but about asking ourselves what model of development we wish to support,” added Ferrari. “These proposals do not come out of nowhere: they respond to tourist demand, align with business opportunities and are made possible by administrative decisions. A mechanism that ends up feeding on itself, gradually transforming the mountains into a place where consumption models already available elsewhere are replicated. Are we still capable of offering a different kind of mountain experience? Is it really necessary to bring swimming pools and spa centres to an altitude of two thousand metres to make an area attractive when it already possesses an extraordinary natural heritage? And above all, are we convinced that this model is sustainable in the long term?”
Dining and Cooking