India, Dec. 12 -- Ask 10 people where their favorite cuisine comes from, and odds are the majority will say "Italy." And it appears that UNESCO agrees.

In December, UNESCO, the cultural arm of the United Nations, announced it added "Italian cooking" to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list, a list that UNESCO explains, "helps with intercultural dialogue, and encourages mutual respect for other ways of life." Specifically, Italian Cuisine was added to its Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity List, which "is made up of those intangible heritage elements that help demonstrate the diversity of this heritage and raise awareness about its importance."

"This recognition is a source of pride but also of awareness of the further valorizatio...