DELICIOUS FOOD: True Italian Taste 2022's theme of “Authentic Italian Table - Italian Breakfast & Aperitivo” introduces an overview of Italian breakfast – its practice, special features and local staples of Tuscany region. Photo courtesy of Multimedia JSC

HCM CITY — True Italian Taste 2022, a project aiming to promote authentic Italian cuisine to the world, has kicked off in Việt Nam.

The project is promoted and financed by the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation to promote and safeguard authentic and quality Italian products.

It is coordinated by Assocamerestero (Association of Italian Chambers of Commerce Abroad) in collaboration with the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Việt Nam (ICHAM), with the patronage of the Embassy of Italy in Việt Nam.

The theme of this year’s project is “Authentic Italian Table - Italian Breakfast & Aperitivo” which introduces an overview of Italian breakfast – its practice, special features and local staples of the Tuscany region.

At the opening event of True Italian Taste 2022 in Hà Nội last Wednesday, Italian Ambassador to Việt Nam Antonio Alessandro highlighted the importance of Italian food, along with fashion and furniture in Italy's economy and culture.

He also emphasised the role of Việt Nam in supplying agricultural products, particularly coffee beans, to Italy, and hoped to continue to maintain and promote relations between the two countries.

PROMOTING ITALY: ICHAM chairman Michele D’Ercole, Italian Ambassador to Việt Nam Antonio Alessandro, and Lê Thị Quỳnh Trang, Brand Ambassador for True Italian Taste 2022 (from left to right). Photo courtesy of Multimedia JSC

Lê Thị Quỳnh Trang, President of Vietnam International Fashion Week, was appointed as the Brand Ambassador for True Italian Taste 2022.

Trang said, “I am very honoured and proud to be trusted and invited to continue to be Ambassador of Italian Cuisine in Việt Nam.”

“The role will bring me more opportunities to connect and promote cultural development between the two countries, as well as promote Italian culture, fashion and cuisine to more Vietnamese people,” she said.

Trang was founder and chairwoman of VIFW in 2014. The leading fashion event in the country has attracted numerous local and international designers and brands, especially Italian brands like Elisabetta Franchi, Maison Gattinoni, Retano Balestra, and Antonio Grimaldi.

In 2021, she was awarded the Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy in recognition of her contribution to promoting and consolidating the reputation of Italy in Việt Nam in the fields of creativity, training, marketing, craftsmanship, fashion, and culture.

Trang has returned from Italy after participating in the Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags, an international trade fair for footwear, leather goods and accessories, and Pitti Immagine Uomo, a renowned international trade fair for men's clothing and accessories to enhance trade and business cooperation between the two countries.

True Italian Taste is part of “The Extraordinary Italian Taste” programme, which promotes conscious consumption of 100 per cent-made-in-Italy agri-food products by spreading knowledge of the origin, nutritional aspects, and PDO (protected designation of origin) and PGI (protected geographical indication) certifications.

To date, the project has been implemented in 40 countries and territories. It began in Việt Nam in 2018. — VNS