Buongiorno amici:
My chef and restaurateur colleagues worldwide are getting ready for this upcoming full-packed week when Italian cuisine celebrates its formidable asset. Chefs like Marco Medaglia, president of CIM (Italian Chefs in the World), and prolific writer and gastronomic critic Donato Troiano, are the energy behind the message, as well as thousands more. The latter is a powerful influencer in the protection and diffusion of Italian products and the director of several gastronomic publications.
Below is a condensed version of what Mr. Troiano writes:
Again, everything is ready for the 5th edition of the Week of Italian Cuisine in the World from 23 to 29 November 2020. The cities of Amsterdam, Bruxelles, London, and Moscow will be sites for the WEEK.
The “week” was born in 2016, designed by the Italian government, to promote gastronomy, food, and wine traditions, distinctive signs of identity, and Italian culture throughout the World. The Government of the Farnesina in Rome, and other associations such as Unit, Mipaf, Miur, and Mibact, and in conjunction with the whole agri-food sector, are working endlessly in various web formats initiatives to launch a successful event, in these unprecedented COVID TIMES.
The essential components of Italian identity and culture are the kitchen. Focusing on nutrition, health, and wellness, the discovery of flavors, and the pleasure of socializing are fundamental topics in the endeavor.
During the event, there will be an opportunity to reflect on the Mediterranean Diet’s benefits and its defense properties against the possibility of illness during this unusual emergency and address the sector’s economic issues.
How much is Italian Cuisine worth in the World?
Italian Cuisine has generated a staggering increment in the catering market, with numbers reaching 2,210 billion Euros in 2016. The stats are related to detailed research conducted by the Alma International Cooking School, located in Parma, Italy, shared in 2018 during the conference “Italian catering in the World: Trend, and business in the international market.”
This year’s events will undoubtedly be a spectacle of promotion and detailed programs, with over 100 events are scheduled. There will be celebrity chefs, live cooking shows, and quizzes on food and tourist destinations as some of the themes. Participants will have the opportunity to win various prizes, ranging from food products to certificates.
The National Tourism Agency will offer the World a lesson in food and happiness by gathering it around “an ideal table.” Each embassy will have the opportunity to create a typical Italian specialty in collaboration with the elite food magazine il Gambero Rosso. Therefore, the attention focuses entirely on the Italian food and wine heritage, a wealth widespread in the regional territories and small villages of the Belpaese and among the main tourist attractions in Italy.
According to the Enit Research Office, food and wine tourism in the Belpaese generated 354.5 million euros in 2019, increasing + 17.0% in 2018. For over 1.4 million travelers (+ 29.9%), yes, they recorded approximately 3.4 million overnight stays (+ 30.2%). The tourist is increasingly at the center of the holiday experience, based on sustainability. The initiatives focus on the uniqueness of the recipes and the ingredients used. Various virtual education marketing programs, nourishing the image of the Peninsula in international markets.
The quest for premium quality will include all DOP and IGP and wines from every territory. World-caliber chefs such as Massimo Bottura will provide a substantial marketing boost. The Italian National Tourism Agency (ENIT) has fully embraced the concept, reiterating the Made in Italy’s importance.
The cycle of thematic events conceived by Enit creates a network for the protection of Italian products. It allows for the enhancing territory’s excellence in a synergy that involves the national cultural industry. Starred chefs, exhibitions, and virtual master classes on products typical regional cooking show in video streaming for sensory experiences in Italian food and wine. The Agency Enit is heavily engaging in adv branding, digital marketing project, visual strategy with specific food products, and wine contents.
The events that will take place aim to keep alive the Peninsula’s interest and the deep-rooted identity of its gastronomic products, a symbol of culture and social enhancement. And so, friends, let’s celebrate once again the cuisines that have influenced the world in eating better and formatted the boundaries for a healthy lifestyle.
