World Pasta Day is an annual event that celebrates the world’s most beloved food: pasta. The origin of this particular and mouthwatering day dates back to 1998 as per the initiative of chefs the world over. Read here below three fun facts about World Pasta Day.
World Pasta Day: from Italy to the world
The World Pasta Congress
On the 25th of October 1995 at the World Pasta Congress pasta makers from around the world enthusiastically agreed that pasta, a healthy, delicious, popular, sustainable and convenient food, deserved annual worldwide recognition.
“This celebration of World Pasta Day draws increasing attention to the merits and benefits of pasta-its great taste, its healthfulness and its simple convenience-for people everywhere. Join families, chefs and restaurants around the world every year on October 25th and celebrate World Pasta Day by trying a new recipe or two, or an old family-favorite, with your friends and family. And don’t forget that the magical merits of pasta-taste, health sustainability and convenience-are worthy of celebration all year long!”
Worldpastaday.org
Pasta in numbers
In 20 years, global pasta production has almost doubled, going from 9.1 to almost 17 million tonnes.
In 2021, almost 200 countries consumed almost 17 million tons of pasta, double that of 10 years ago. In the first 6 months of 2022, Italian pasta exports grew by +9%. Among the main consumers are Germany, the United Kingdom, France and the United States.
With around 23 kilos per capita per year, Italians are the main consumers. Italy is also the leading pasta producing country: with 3.6 million tonnes, preceding Turkey and the United States.
Unione Italiana Food conducted an important series of interviews with restaurateurs. From these it emerged that in 82% of the restaurants interviewed (the highest in Japan and France), pasta consumption has increased. Curiosity: 22% of restaurateurs serve maxi-portions over 100 grams
Pasta is changing
Green light for experimentation with different types of grains, from buckwheat to spelt, from kamut to Timilia and above all an inclusive cuisine also for those who, for example, cannot consume the classic durum wheat pasta because they are celiac (two percent of Italians, almost a million people, plus another three million who are gluten sensitive, i.e. forced to reduce their gluten consumption): in fact, there are many gluten free alternatives to celebrate on World Pasta Day, from pasta made from legume flour (red lentils, peas, broad beans, lupins and chickpeas) to that based on rice, corn, quinoa or a combination of these.
«We tend to imagine pasta as an immutable product, in reality this dish has accompanied the change in our lifestyles over time. If we think about how we ate pasta 30 or 60 years ago we realize how much recipes, consumption occasions, formats and portions have changed. The fortune of pasta in the world is due precisely to how it manages to intercept food, cultural and social trends”
Riccardo Felicetti, CEO of Pastificio Felicetti
How many types of pasta?
Today there are over 300 types of pasta from spaghetti to penne and tortellini consumed in Italy which can be classified into dry and fresh pasta (full or perforated), short, thin, smooth, ridged. The countless varieties of pasta are in fact distinguished by the type of dough, format, surface and the possible presence of the filling.
A variety that testifies, once again, to the immense richness of the Italian culinary heritage, capable of combining history and innovation, tradition and creativity of one of the most loved and appreciated products in the world. The shape is not just a fruit of the imagination, the different formats are a question of taste and the choice is also linked to the consistency and the seasoning with which it will be combined.
*Source: We Love Pasta; Unione Italiana Food
Picture as available on unsplash.com
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