The cultural, social and aesthetic
value of food are at the center of a campaign launched by
Italy's cultural and agricultural ministries that have declared
2018 the year of Italian food in the world.
The year has opened with a campaign on social media under
#museitaliani launched on the website of the cultural ministry -
wwww.beniculturali.it/annodelciboitaliano - focusing on typical
gourmet dishes.
Meanwhile events promoting Italian culture, wine and food are
opening this month to sponsor the Mediterranean diet, which
ranks on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage, the
Pantelleria vine, the landscapes of Langhe Roero and Monferrato,
Parma's gastronomic tradition and Neapolitan pizza, among
others.
Other initiatives will include events to support the lands of
Prosecco bubbly wine and pasta Amatriciana as UNESCO candidates
and to launch rural areas and local products as tourist
attractions, with a specific focus on fighting food waste
The close link between food, art and landscape will also be
at the center of the strategy to promote tourism through
national tourism agency ENIT and the network of Italian
embassies worldwide to highlight how much food and wine are part
of Italy's cultural identity.
"We have a unique heritage worldwide which, thanks to the
year dedicated to food, we will be able to promote even more",
said Agriculture Minister Maurizio Martina.
After the 2015 food-themed Universal Exposition in Milan,
Italy's food will take the limelight once more, the minister
said.
"It's not only a matter of stressing the economic success of
this sector which in 2017 reached record exports worth 40
billion euros but also of stressing the deep connection between
food, land and cultural identity", he said.
"We will do this through a new project on food districts",
which will involve farmers, fishermen and chefs.
The minister said 2018 will be dedicated to Gualtiero
Marchesi, doyen of Italy's superchefs, who died on December 26,
who embodied "all these values, promoting them at an
international level".
Cultural Minister Dario Franceschini said the year of Italian
food will provide an important occasion to "make a big
investment on the image of our country in the world".
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