The City of Gastronomy project by UNESCO is under the umbrella of the wider Creative Cities Network which was launched in 2004. The idea is to organise member cities into seven creative fields Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, Media Arts, and Music.
Gastronomy has been recognised as an important cultural heritage, since the culinary traditions of a people represent their identity revealing their habits and customs. In order to be listed as a City of Gastronomy, certain criteria set by UNESCO have to be met. These include a well-developed gastronomy scene that is characteristic of the urban centre and/or region, a vibrant gastronomy community with numerous traditional restaurants and chefs, indigenous ingredients have to used in cooking, there has to be a presence of traditional food markets and traditional food industry, the city must respect for the environment and promote sustainable local products. So far, there are over 290 cities in the Creative Cities list.