UNESCO recognition for Italian cuisine

The food of Italy has been granted a cultural heritage listing by UNESCO.

Although dishes like pizza were already listed, UNESCO has now recognised the wider traditions of Italian cooking and the way they are practised and passed down.

The United Nations agency specialising in education, sciences, and culture described Italian cuisine as a “means of connecting with family and the community, whether at home, in schools, or through festivals, ceremonies and social gatherings”.

“For us Italians, cuisine is not just food or a collection of recipes. It is so much more: it is culture, tradition, work, wealth,” said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who had championed the bid. 

The decision also saw Egypt’s koshary (a combination of macaroni, rice and beans flavoured with tomatoes, onions and garlic) added to the list, alongside other food-related traditions already recognised globally, including washoku (culinary balance) in Japan, Malaysia’s breakfast culture and the French gastronomic meal.

So everyone gets a prize, basically.

Leading chef Michelangelo Mammoliti told La Repubblica newspaper that the news gave him “a great sense of pride”, both as an Italian and as a chef.

Mammoliti heads La Rei Natura in Piedmont, the only new three-star restaurant in the 2026 Michelin Guide for Italy. He added: “Italy is one of the nations where regional cuisine has a very big impact on culture and traditions.”

Italy’s food and wine sector hopes the recognition will further strengthen tourism, which already brings 80 million international visitors to the country each year.

Other new additions to the list included Iceland’s natural swimming pool culture, the practice of Cuban Son music and dance, and Albania’s art of playing, singing and making the lahuta, a musical instrument.

Image: Ivan Naunov, Scop.io 

Global recognition for Henschke family

Henschke Wines has been named a Gold Member by International Wineries for Climate Action (IWCA) for its sustainability actions.

Henschke's efforts in ensuring that winemaking operations are powered by, at least, 20% of renewable energy on site and demonstrating a consistent reduction of emissions per litre of wine means that they are among the first in the Australian wine sector to gain the highest standards in carbon emission reduction.

“We’re thrilled to receive this recognition for our family and team’s efforts," said fifth-generation winemaker and owner Stephen Henschke.

"[My wife] Prue and I recognised that the changing weather patterns experienced through the 1990s were a threat to our ability to continually improve wine quality.

"With our focus on crafting captivating single-vineyard wines from pre-phylloxera vines, we knew we needed to care greatly for these old vines, and the land they grow in.

"Preserving precious natural resources, water and soil fertility, has been Prue’s unwavering focus for the past four decades. It has led to extensive work to improve biodiversity and soil health, as well as to gain certification for these sustainable practices.”

Prue Henschke, chief viticulturist and co-owner of the Eden Valley producer, said: “With the sixth generation joining us in the business, we’ve embraced the opportunity to be among the pacemakers in the community.

"This has strengthened our commitment to adopting less-polluting forms of energy with our solar microgrid and to putting downward pressure on our emissions footprint.

"Completing our GHG inventory with IWCA has been another important step in committing our team and business to the long-term goal of consistently reducing our environmental impact.

"As caretakers of some of the oldest vines in the world, we want to tread as lightly as possible on our land; land that has been nurtured by six generations of Henschke and is our past, our present our future.”