Gastronomical culture and the importance of food in a global world

“Food” involves a vast and complicated network of professions, actions, movements and skills (from agriculture, to trade and distribution, to cooking and eating). All these areas can be considered elements of a single great macro-process, which is much more complicated than most consumers realize. Debate at this roundtable focused on the role gastronomy plays in spreading knowledge and understanding to all those many players that take part in the process. Discussion highlighted the essential link between ecology and food culture; the importance of consolidating a new humanism through the recovery of local traditions and tastes – not just of the agricultural sort, but of cultural ones as well. Most of all, participants highlighted Italy’s particular need to add value to their renowned products, by promoting them more effectively and by improving their distribution.