Italians love, adore, and venerate their cuisine, and you can fully take my word for it—I was born and raised in Italy. We love our food so much that we decided that it should not only be appreciated and cherished in our country, but it should be known and recognized world-wide.
The Italian government is definitely in on this, so much so that, just last week, it nominated Italian cuisine to become part of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list (take that, French baguette). The nomination announcement highlighted the importance of Italian food in the sociocultural sphere, and stressed the impact it has in shaping the country’s culture and traditions everyday.
It was thanks to Maddalena Fossati, editor-in-chief of La Cucina Italiana, that Italian cuisine ended up running for the UNESCO list. Back in 2020, Fossati started a campaign to push for official UNESCO recognition, Condé Nast Traveler reports.
“I believe in our identity and in the complicated yet wonderful country that is Italy,” Fossati said, according to Condé Nast Traveler. “Now’s the time to try and determinedly reaffirm the importance of our culinary lifestyle, which is loved and imitated all over the planet.”
The official decision is expected to be announced in December 2025. If the nomination is accepted, Italian cuisine will join “Neapolitan-style pizza making” on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
Dining and Cooking