Date: Sunday, 18 June 2023; 7th Anniversary.
Sponsor: United Nations
Coordinators:
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
- The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Objectives:
The Sustainable Gastronomy Day is annually observed for the following purposes:
- To raise public awareness of the role and importance of sustainable gastronomy in promoting food security, agricultural development, sustainable food production, nutrition, conservation of biodiversity, and sustainable development.
- To recognize the practices and principals associated with sustainable food consumption, including the art of food collection, preparation, and consumption.
Inception:
The first Sustainable Gastronomy Day was officially observed on June 18, 2017,
History
On 21 December 2016, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the resolution A/RES/71/246 and declared 18 June as an international observance – Sustainable Gastronomy Day. The resolution also acknowledged gastronomy as a cultural expression related to the natural and cultural diversity of the world.
What is sustainable gastronomy?
Gastronomy refers to the style of cooking. In different regions or for different people, the style of cooking is quite different, making gastronomy a cultural expression of the world’s natural and cultural diversity.
Sustainable gastronomy refers to the cuisine or the style of cooking that maximizes food usage and minimizes food waste through considering where the ingredients are from, how the food is produced and processed, and how it reaches our plates.
Why do we mark the Sustainable Gastronomy Day?
Food production contributes to our global climate crisis and environmental degradation by negatively impacting our air, water, and land. According to the FAO, one-third of all the food produced in the world is either lost or wasted, amounting to 1.3 billion tons per year, which cause an unnecessary burden on natural resources. Food waste also incurs significant costs. The FAO estimates that the total financial loss caused by food waste is about $1 trillion every year.
Sustainable management of our food and agriculture is critical to maintaining and revitalizing our environment. Sustainable and more healthier consumption patterns are particularly important at a time when natural resources are being depleted rapidly across the world; and poverty and hunger are ruining many lives.
Sustainable gastronomy play an important role in combatting food waste. Sustainable Gastronomy Day is an ideal opportunity to raise and spread awareness of food waste or loss and promote sustainable consumption patterns of food products.
Official website:
www.un.org/en/observances/sustainable-gastronomy-day
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