The board of the European Academy of Gastronomy deliberates in Krakow

On Friday 22 March the board of the European Academy of Gastronomy deliberated in Krakow. Members of the board: Rafael Ansón, Maciej Dobrzyniecki and Inmaculada Quintana Cabrera, met with the media and representatives of the tourism and business sector.

The members of the board of the European Academy of Gastronomy, i.e. an organisation that is focused on supporting gastronomic culture, visited Krakow. Last year the Academy awarded Krakow the title of the European Capital of Gastronomic Culture 2019 (ESKG). - Krakow implements a lot of projects related to the title. Not only do we want to encourage tourists to visit Krakow and fall in love with the city, but our plans include events for the local residents so that they also learn more about Krakow from behind the kitchen door - said Anna Korfel-Jasińska, Deputy Mayor of the City of Krakow for Education, Sport and Tourism.

- We are aware how extensive Krakow's culinary heritage is and that it is a part of our cultural legacy. Recently more people see Krakow as a culinary destination - said Maciej Dobrzyniecki, Secretary General of the European Academy of Gastronomy. - Gastronomy and tourism are sectors of happiness and they also generate high revenues, added Rafael Ansón, President of the European Academy of Gastronomy who hopes that the title granted to Krakow will inspire people to collect their old family recipes and become a pretext for other cities to take a closer look at their culinary heritage. Rafael Ansón praised the work done by the Municipality of Krakow related to the ESKG 2019 title. He highlighted the fact that this initiative is unique in Europe. - Krakow can become the plate that showcases Europe's entire heritage - said Ansón during his meeting with the journalists.

Members of EAG, Rafael Ansón, Maciej Dobrzyniecki and Inmaculada Quintana Cabrera, also met with prof. Jacek Majchrowski, the Mayor of Krakow, and with the representatives of the tourism and business sector. Rafael Ansón stressed the fact that 84 million tourists visited Spain last year out of which 20 million came inspired by Spain's culinary repertoire. - Food-oriented tourists spend 20% more than regular visitors which means they left 90 billion euro in Spain - argued Ansón.

During the meeting it was discussed which products and ideas could promote Krakow's culinary offer - and the city itself - in the world. The participants highlighted the need to focus on local cuisine and traditional recipes as well as engage recognised experts to promote them. Another important topic were projects oriented at pupils of vocational cooking schools (. Elżbieta Kantor, director of the Tourism Department in the Municipality of Krakow, told the guests about partnership and cooperation opportunities that the city offers for projects related to the ESKG 2019 title.

- We have planned phenomenal events and expectations are high, but we can meet them if the title is promoted well and various Krakow milieus join forces to harness its potential – said Wojciech Blecharczyk from the Krakow Chamber of Commerce "RH plus," highlighting the benefits of collaboration.