News of the bakery sent France into a frenzy, with members of France’s UNESCO delegation celebrating by raising baguettes in the air as the decision was announced in Rabat, Morocco.
UNESCO has made the French baguette part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, and French representatives are everywhere. pic.twitter.com/s1UbutiVBZ
— Jules Darmanin (@JulesDrmnn) November 30, 2022
Once described by French President Emmanuel Macron as “250 grams of magic and perfection,” the baguette is an integral part of French culture and cuisine. Many French people visit bakeries every day to get warm bread before dinner at home.
The French bakery led a multi-year campaign to secure this status on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
French Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak said the decision was “a great honor for the places that bring together our artisans and our bakeries”.
Matin, midi et soir, la baguette de pain fait partie du quotidien des Français. Ce savoir-faire artisanal vient d’être inscrit au patrimoine immatériel de l’humanité par l’UNESCO. Belle reconnaissance pour nos artisans and ces lieux fédérateurs que sont nos boulangeries! 🥖🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/dkAGPD5PiR
– Rima Abdul Malak (@RimaAbdulMalak) November 30, 2022
Small and Medium Enterprises, Trade and Tourism Minister Olivia Gregoire hailed the decision as a milestone for France and its bakery industry. It honors the “French dessert-vivre”, “our tradition of sharing and friendliness, and above all the pastry knowledge of our artisans”. said.
French bakeries produce about 6 billion baguettes a year, according to French newspaper Le Monde. But around 400 bakeries a year have been disappearing across the country, particularly in rural areas, in recent decades, a reminder to the industry that more needs to be done to protect baguette-making know-how. .
“A baguette has very few ingredients: flour, water, salt and yeast, but each baguette is unique, and the most important ingredient is the skill of the baker,” said Dominique Anract, president of the French National Association of Pastry and Confectioners. after the decision.
The French celebrated this decision and celebrated their love of baguettes.
Claire Dinghut, 26, French-American food and travel content creator, said in an email: “I’m really happy to know that the baguette is on the World Heritage List because it’s so unique to France.”
“I rarely eat a baguette outside of France because without the French ‘ritual’ of my local (and favorite) bakery, a baguette is just eating bread. A baguette is so much more than that,” says Dinhout, who lives in London. “Nothing compares to the first tear of a fresh baguette. Perfect on its own with salted butter, sweet jam and lots of cheese… The list goes on.”
UNESCO recognizes traditions, crafts and objects as part of the intangible cultural heritage of mankind, because of the “rich wealth of knowledge and skills” through which they are “transmitted from one generation to another”.
In this case, in the nomination developed by France, it was emphasized that the baguette “creates a pattern of consumption and social habits that are different from other types of bread, such as visiting the bakery every day to buy bread, making special trays according to its long shape, etc.). “
“The baguette is used at family meals, in restaurants, at work, in school cafeterias, etc.,” it added.
