Oct. 2 – Beyond all doubt, a poorly prepared dish is the worst sort of publicity for Italy’s noble cooking tradition, and it is therefore necessary to protect and “certify” Italy’s best culinary traditions. With this in mind, 128 ambassadors of Italian taste will gather in New York to uphold the “Italian hospitality: Italian restaurants in the world” project, which certifies the quality of Italian cuisine. The project was launched by Unioncamere to combat Italian product and recipe counterfeiting, which costs several billions a year to Italy’s domestic production. “We delivered 74 new certificates – says the president of Unioncamere, Ferruccio Dardanello – to as many Italian restaurants that hold high the banner of our food products, bringing to 128 the total number of recognized restaurants in the New York market. We are tired of seeing the Italian brand, symbol of excellence for eating and drinking, by operators that have nothing to do with it.” To obtain the certificate, restaurant owners have to show that they have Italian menus, chefs and staff as well as a large percentage of Italian wines, olive oils and recipes.
