The second edition of Italian Cuisine Week will be held from 20 to 26 November 2017
Italian Cuisine Week is an initiative inspired by the Milan Charter, a document promoting sustainability and food security, a legacy of Expo Milan 2016. The Week is overseen by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to present the many aspects of Italian food culture and to highlight Italy’s role as a leader in the global debate on sustainability and food security. The initiative showcases the quality of Italian products and presents food-and-wine itineraries in lesser-known Italian regions, in line with the 2017-2022 Strategic Tourism Plan and with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry Policy’s programme to promote Italy’s agricultural sector, Italian cuisine, the benefits of the Mediterranean diet and the importance of guarantee-of-origin certifications.
The themes of the 2017 edition are:
1) The promotion of Italy’s agri-food industry and the fundamental role of high-quality food and wine in Italian culture and identity;
2) Raising awareness of the value of guarantee-of-origin certifications such as DOC (controlled designation of origin) and DOP (protected designation of origin);
3) The development of long-term collaboration between Italian chefs and their local counterparts;
4) Support for the bid for the Neapolitan art of pizza-making and the Valdobbiadene Prosecco hills as UNESCO World Heritage Sites;
5) Raising awareness of the culinary specialities of the regions recently hit by earthquakes.
This year’s Italian Cuisine Week in the UK comprises 20 events – almost twice as many as last year – promoted by Ambassador Terracciano and coordinated by the Embassy of Italy in London in collaboration with the Italian Trade Agency, the Italian Cultural Institute, the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the UK and the British delegation of the Accademia Italiana della Cucina. These events will feature a variety of interlocutors and partners representing a wide range of sectors, including the food industry, finance, academia and the media. They include conferences, workshops, demonstrations, tastings, dinners, commercial events, presentations of tourist itineraries for food lovers, and cookery lessons.
There will be an emphasis on innovation in the food and beverage sector, with two events presenting over 30 start-ups to investors and stakeholders; the culture of food and conviviality and its health benefits; sustainability and the circular economy in the food sector, with a particular focus on food waste; and the possible impact of Brexit on the sector, both for the UK and for its principal trading partners.
Italian Cuisine Week in the UK features a number of high-profile figures. Senator Mario Monti will be a special guest at the Foreign Press Association Media Awards gala dinner, where chefs Giorgio Locatelli and James Dugan will collaborate on a signature menu. Other prominent figures will include Luigi Scordamaglia, the head of the food-industry federation Federalimentare, and renowned chefs, researchers and authors of note, including Livia and Alfonso Iaccarino, Francesco Mazzei, Stefano Predieri and Simonetta Agnello Hornby.
For further information: stampa.amblondra@esteri.it
