Italian Cooking Protected Under New Unesco Rules

Italian cooking has been awarded a special cultural heritage status by the United Nations’ cultural agency Unesco.

This means that Italian cooking traditions and practices have been officially recognised and listed as an “intangible cultural heritage”.

Italy already has 21 other traditions on Unesco’s list, including Neapolitan pizza making and opera singing, but it is the first country to be recognised for its food rather than for a single tradition or recipe.

The announcement was made during a big Unesco meeting in the Indian capital Delhi, where Koshary, the spicy dish of lentils, rice, and pasta available at Egyptian food stalls, was also given Intangible Cultural Heritage status.