Ambassador: Italian Cuisine Week contributes to deepening of ties between two countries

By Laman Ismayilova

A press conference has been organized on the occasion of the opening of the Italian Cuisine Week, which kicks off in Baku from December 4 to 10.

The Italian Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Luca di Gianfrancesco, stated at the press conference that the opening of the event coincided with a remarkable occurrence.

"It is gratifying that all this is happening against the backdrop of an active process to support the candidacy of Italian cuisine for inclusion in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List. This heralds the global recognition of Italian cuisine. The Italian Cuisine Week contributes to the further deepening of relations between the two countries," the ambassador said.

The Director of the Italian Trade Agency, Andrea Maccanico, outlined that Azerbaijan is Italy's number one partner.

"If we look at the statistics for the 10 months of imports from Italy to Azerbaijan, there is a 10 percent increase. And over the last three years, the overall growth has been more than 15 percent," he added.

The director announced that as part of the Italian Cuisine Week, a master class will be held featuring Chef Berton.

Andrea Maccanico also mentioned that next week meetings will be organized between Azerbaijani businessmen and Italian entrepreneurs.

Chef Berton said that it is a great honor for him to represent Italian cuisine in Azerbaijan.

"I had the idea to use Azerbaijani products in the culinary presentations that I will conduct during these days. As we know, Azerbaijan is a producer of high-quality saffron. In my opinion, it would be a good idea to add Azerbaijani saffron to risotto. We are also thinking of a new soup recipe. The main ingredient of the dish will be Azerbaijani caviar," the chef concluded.