Mexican cuisine is celebrating after being declared intangible cultural heritage of humanity by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO, on November 16, 2025.

In an interview with La Opinion, Gloria Lopez Morales, president of the Conservatory of Mexican Gastronomic Culture and one of the people who participated in the research and registration process that led to Mexican cuisine being declared a cultural heritage, shares her thoughts on that momentous historical event that Mexico experienced more than a decade ago.

“What we achieved 15 years ago with the UNESCO inscription is a privilege, an obligation, and a responsibility… It is a great privilege because it recognizes the qualities of our culinary cultures and our food system, but at the same time, it is a great responsibility because we have to safeguard and protect this heritage,” Dr. Lopez Morales says with great joy.

—Where did the idea for the UNESCO registration come from?—

“From many sources; nobody reinvents the wheel. But UNESCO was compiling its list of cultural heritage to be safeguarded and rescued. Several people, including myself of course, realized that the most important cultural heritage, or one of the most important, is the heritage that extends from the fields to the tables, the heritage that allows us to eat and create food full of creativity. Of course, biodiversity and the cultural diversity of the countries and regions influence this, and we incorporated that into our application,” she commented.

For Dr. Lopez Morales, it wasn't easy for Mexico to receive this designation because UNESCO had to be convinced, through a comprehensive application and rigorous scientific research, why Mexican cuisine should be recognized as a gastronomic heritage.

It was in 2005 that the Mexican government made its first attempt to register corn with UNESCO as the central element of Mexican cuisine in a document entitled “The Ancestral Cuisine of Corn. Mexico. Rites, Ceremonies,and Cultural Practices of Mexican Cuisine.”

However, this application was rejected, and it wasn't until 2010 that UNESCO Mexico recognized after it submitted a nomination focused on the gastronomy of Michoacan, featuring recipes from indigenous communities.

“The idea is easy to conceive; what is very difficult is giving it a sufficiently convincing structure and scientific consistency, and that is what we did to prepare the application,” said the writer.

–So, was it difficult to achieve this recognition?–

“Yes, it was, because countries had never considered inscribing a gastronomic heritage on a cultural heritage list of an international organization, so we had a lot of work over several years to prepare the application that finally “It was inscribed in 2010 by the international organization,” the journalist also mentioned. The Mexican government, through a statement released by the Ministry of Culture on November 16, 2010—during the administration of Felipe Calderon Hinojosa—announced that “in an unprecedented event, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO, during its Fifth Ordinary Session held in Nairobi, Kenya, from November 15 to 19, inscribed the Traditional Cuisine of Mexico on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.” “Several criteria were considered, ranging from antiquity, historical continuity, the identity axis that cuisines constitute in terms of a sense of belonging, the originality of the products, and the capacity of these cuisines to incorporate external influences,” explained Dr. Morales, who was a member of the Mexican delegation that traveled to Kenya in 2010 to witness the declaration.

According to UNESCO, in the document titled “Traditional Mexican Cuisine: A Living, Ancestral Community Culture and the Michoacan Paradigm,” it states that “traditional Mexican cuisine is a complete cultural model that encompasses agricultural activities, ritual practices, ancient practical knowledge, culinary techniques, and ancestral community customs and behaviors.”

“What makes Mexican cuisine unique is its capacity to have assimilated influences, trends, and products from all corners of the world, given its strategic geographical location, looking on one side towards Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East, and on the other towards Asia and its diversity In. short, “Mexican cuisine very quickly incorporated products with cultural influences from all corners of the world,” argued Gloria Lopez Morales.

–What would your advice be to continue preserving this cultural heritage?–

“Young people need to be informed, prepared, educated, and trained so that the cuisine, which has all that wonder and spontaneity that cuisines around the world have,can unite in knowledge to create awareness about the need for cuisine to always be aligned with the requirements regarding the environment, the fertility of the land, and also the nutritional requirements of our times. “Young people also need to become aware of our own rich food culture,” the former Mexican diplomat mentioned. This recognition given to Mexican cuisine, thanks to its ancient techniques and pre-Hispanic traditions that include the use of ingredients such as corn, chili peppers, and beans, as well as the use of the comal and molcajete, among others, is only shared with three other cuisines: French (recognition given in 2010), the Mediterranean diet (recognition given in 2013), and Japanese (recognition given in 2013). "The first thing Mexican migrants and residents abroad take with them in their suitcases, in their backpacks, is their cuisine. The memories of their mothers' cooking, the nostalgia for its flavors, which they try very faithfully to reproduce wherever they are. I am surprised and have been able to observe the flourishing, the inclusion of Mexican cuisine in the United States." What I hope for is that we continue to forge connections so that everything that continues to happen in terms of evolution, innovation, and awareness of the roots of our cuisine continues to spread, so that this necessary transmission of knowledge continues. The tortilla knows no borders, and I wish that this maxim remains true. May Mexican cuisine continue to be as vibrant as it is right now. We must continue working together for the advancement of Mexican food,” stated Dr. Gloria Lopez. Following the declaration granted by UNESCO 15 years ago, the Mexican government, through the Ministry of Tourism, decreed in 2016 that November 16th would be “National Mexican Gastronomy Day,” on which various activities would be carried out each year with the aim of celebrating the natural and cultural richness of Mexican cuisine. To train so that the cuisine, which has all that wonder and spontaneity that cuisines around the world have, can unite in knowledge to create awareness about the need for cuisine to always go hand in hand with the requirements of the environment, the fertility of the land, and also the nutritional requirements of our times. “Young people also need to become aware of our own rich food culture,” the former Mexican diplomat mentioned. This recognition given to Mexican cuisine, thanks to its ancient techniques and pre-Hispanic traditions that include the use of ingredients such as corn, chili peppers, and beans, as well as the use of the comal and molcajete, among others, is only shared with three other cuisines: French (recognition given in 2010), the Mediterranean diet (recognition given in 2013), and Japanese (recognition given in 2013). "The first thing Mexican migrants and residents abroad take with them in their suitcases, in their backpacks, is their cuisine. The memories of their mothers' cooking,the nostalgia for its flavors, which they try very faithfully to reproduce wherever they are. “I am surprised and have been able to observe the flourishing, the inclusion of Mexican cuisine in the United States.” What I hope for is that we continue to forge connections so that everything that continues to happen in terms of evolution, innovation, and awareness of the roots of our cuisine continues to spread, so that this necessary transmission of knowledge continues. The tortilla knows no borders, and I wish that this maxim remains true. May Mexican cuisine continue to be as vibrant as it is right now. Following the declaration granted by UNESCO 15 years ago, the Mexican government, through the Ministry of Tourism, decreed in 2016 that November 16th would be “National Mexican Gastronomy Day,” on which various activities would be carried out each year with the aim of celebrating the natural and cultural richness of Mexican cuisine. To train so that the cuisine, which has all that wonder and spontaneity that cuisines around the world have, can unite in knowledge to create awareness about the need for cuisine to always go hand in hand with the requirements regarding the environment, the fertility of the land, and also the nutritional requirements of our times. “Young people also need to become aware of our own rich food culture,” the former Mexican diplomat mentioned. This recognition given to Mexican cuisine, thanks to its ancient techniques and pre-Hispanic traditions that include the use of ingredients such as corn, chili peppers, and beans, as well as the use of the comal and molcajete, among others, is only shared with three other cuisines: French (recognition given in 2010), the Mediterranean diet (recognition given in 2013), and Japanese (recognition given in 2013). "The first thing Mexican migrants and residents abroad take with them in their suitcases, in their backpacks, is their cuisine. The memories of their mothers' cooking, the nostalgia for its flavors, which they try very faithfully to reproduce wherever they are. I am surprised and have been able to observe the flourishing, the inclusion of Mexican cuisine in the United States." What I hope for is that we continue to forge connections so that everything that continues to happen in terms of evolution, innovation, and awareness of the roots of our cuisine continues to spread, so that this necessary transmission of knowledge continues. The tortilla knows no borders, and I wish that this maxim remains true. May Mexican cuisine continue to be as vibrant as it is right now. We must continue working together for the advancement of Mexican food,” stated Dr. Gloria Lopez. Following the declaration granted by UNESCO 15 years ago, the Mexican government, through the Ministry of Tourism, decreed in 2016 that November 16th would be “National Mexican Gastronomy Day,” on which various activities would be carried out each year with the aim of celebrating the natural and cultural richness of Mexican cuisine. Thanks to its ancient techniques and pre-Hispanic traditions, which include the use of ingredients such as corn, chili peppers, and beans, as well as the comal and molcajete, among others, it is only shared with three other cuisines: French (recognition awarded in 2010), Mediterranean (recognition awarded in 2013), and Japanese (recognition awarded in 2013). “The first thing Mexican migrants and residents abroad carry in their suitcases and backpacks is their cuisine. The memories of their mothers' cooking, the nostalgia for its flavors, which they try very faithfully to reproduce wherever they are. I am surprised and have been able to observe the flourishing and inclusion of Mexican cuisine in the United States. What I hope for is that we continue to create connections so that everything that continues to happen in terms of evolution, innovation, and awareness of the roots of the cuisine continues to spread, so that this necessary transmission of knowledge continues. The tortilla knows no borders and "What I hope is that this principle remains in effect. That Mexican cuisine continues to be as vibrant as it is right now. We must continue working together to enhance Mexican food," stated Dr. Gloria Lopez. Following the declaration granted by UNESCO 15 years ago, the Mexican government, through the Ministry of Tourism, decreed in 2016 that November 16th would be “National Mexican Gastronomy Day,” on which various activities would be held each year with the aim of celebrating the natural and cultural richness of Mexican cuisine. Thanks to its ancient techniques and pre-Hispanic traditions, which include the use of ingredients such as corn, chili peppers, and beans, as well as the comal and molcajete, Among others, it is only shared with three other cuisines: French (recognition awarded in 2010), Mediterranean (recognition awarded in 2013), and Japanese (recognition awarded in 2013). "The first thing Mexican migrants and residents abroad carry in their suitcases and backpacks is their cuisine. The memories of their mothers' cooking, the nostalgia for its flavors, which they try very faithfully to reproduce wherever they are. I am surprised and have been able to observe the flourishing and inclusion of Mexican cuisine in the United States. What I hope for is that we continue to create connections so that everything that continues to happen in terms of evolution, innovation, and awareness of the roots of the cuisine continues to spread, so that this necessary transmission of knowledge continues. The tortilla knows no borders and “What I hope is that this principle remains in effect. That Mexican cuisine continues to be as vibrant as it is right now. "We must continue working together to enhance Mexican food," stated Dr. Gloria Lopez. Following the declaration granted by UNESCO 15 years ago,Following the declaration made by UNESCO 15 years ago, the Mexican government, through the Ministry of Tourism, decreed in 2016 that November 16th would be "National Mexican Gastronomy Day," on which various activities would be held each year with the aim of celebrating the natural and cultural richness of Mexican cuisine.

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