Gastronomy is a cultural expression of the world’s natural and cultural diversity. On June 18, we celebrate Sustainable Gastronomy Day and acknowledge that everyone plays a role in making sustainable choices for healthy diets and a food-secure future.
What is Sustainable Gastronomy?
Gastronomy is sometimes called the art of food. It can also refer to a style of cooking from a particular region. In other words, gastronomy often refers to local food and cuisine. Sustainability is the idea that something (e.g. agriculture, fishing or even preparation of food) is done in a way that is not wasteful of our natural resources and can be continued into the future without being detrimental to our environment or health.
Sustainable gastronomy, therefore, means cuisine that takes into account where the ingredients are from, how the food is grown and how it gets to our markets and eventually to our plates.
Sustainable Gastronomy Day 2026: Where Food Connects Culture, Health and Planet
18/06/2026
Sustainable Gastronomy Day highlights how food systems connect agriculture, environment, culture and health across the world. It underscores the need...
Why does it have a “day”?
Because eating local foods that have been produced sustainably makes a difference to people’s livelihoods, to the environment and to economies. By 2050, the world will have over 9 billion mouths to feed. Yet, one third of all food produced is lost or wasted. As it stands now, we are using our oceans, forests and soils in largely unsustainable ways. We need to be more careful about how we use our natural resources as producers and we need to be pickier about how we choose our food as consumers.
Why should I care?
Most of us care about food. Some of us REALLY care about food (We are talking to you foodies out there!). Caring about our local foods and markets means that we can help to preserve our culinary roots: the traditional crops, recipes and cultures from which these cuisines originate. It means that we are mindful of the resources that have gone into growing the food that we cherish and that we are helping to keep culinary traditions alive.
By being open to locally grown foods and eating what is in season, you can help shift the buying patterns of local businesses, like restaurants and hotels, and support the area’s fishers and farmers. You can also expand your diet to include other traditional crops, local to where you live like quinoa or cactus pear, many of which are full of vitamins and minerals.
What can I do?
While cooking, and even after your meal, be conscious to use all of your ingredients wisely and to save your leftovers. Being careful about portion size, expiration dates and reuse of meals is one of the easiest ways to save natural resources.
As overweight and obesity rates soar worldwide, and deficiencies of many vitamins and minerals persist in all world regions, it is that much more important to ensure that healthy diets from sustainable food systems are available and affordable to everyone. We can all take action to achieve healthy diets and a Zero Hunger world by 2030
Learn More
Spread the word!
#SustainableGastronomyDay
campaign by sharing our free material on digital channels.
Trombolotto: Italy's ancient citrus fruit reviving old town culinary traditions
18/06/2026
Behind the medieval walls of Sermoneta, Italy, an ancient yellow citrus fruit called the trombolotto is reviving old town traditions and recipes. Farmer...