Intangible cultural heritage or living heritage constitutes the traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive events, traditional knowledge, practices, and skills inherited from our ancestors and passed down from one generation to another (UNESCO. (n.d.). What is intangible cultural heritage? https://ich.unesco.org/en/what-is-intangible-heritage-00003 ). Traditional cuisines and culinary skills are a form of living heritage that deeply connects with the indigenous community and reflects a community’s history, values, customs, and social practices. Presently, due to globalization, the traditional cuisines and culinary practices are on the verge of getting lost or losing their authenticity. Hence, it is important to preserve and restore the indigenous food and culinary traditions, especially for future generations, and this can be done through culinary tourism development by introducing the local cuisines and culinary traditions or rituals as a tourist attraction factor. The conservation of culinary traditions through tourism can be strategized and innovatively managed by applying a community-based living heritage approach, thus involving the indigenous population or local residents in creating opportunities for tourists to taste traditional cuisines as well as participate in activities like culinary trails and cooking classes. This, in turn, helps in generating employment and additional sources of income for the local families. Maharashtra is one such state in India that has taken the initiative to develop and popularize culinary tourism with the purpose of preserving the varieties of traditional cuisines prepared by the local population using indigenous ingredients, as well as for the creation of an additional source of employment and income generation for the local people. With this background, this chapter aims to understand, through the lens of cultural anthropology, the role of tourism in the preservation and restoration of indigenous cuisines and culinary traditions as a form of living heritage through the active involvement of the local population. The study mainly uses qualitative methodology based on observation, interviews, and secondary data sources like various literature, reports, and blogs. The first section of the paper discusses the link between the cuisines and culinary tradition as a form of living heritage, tourism, and its implications. This is followed by an overview of the traditional cuisines and culinary traditions of Maharashtra and how it holds ample scope and opportunities for the development of culinary tourism. The various schemes and initiatives for the development of culinary or gastronomy tourism in Maharashtra are presented in the following section. The paper ends by highlighting the conclusions drawn about the role of culinary tourism in protecting the traditional cuisines as living heritage and the significance of the community-based approach for achieving economic and cultural sustainability.

Culinary Tourism and Conservation of Traditional Cuisines in Maharashtra, India

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发表日期：

2026年

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Sanjukta Sattar

摘要

Intangible cultural heritage or living heritage constitutes the traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive events, traditional knowledge, practices, and skills inherited from our ancestors and passed down from one generation to another (UNESCO. (n.d.). What is intangible cultural heritage? https://ich.unesco.org/en/what-is-intangible-heritage-00003 ). Traditional cuisines and culinary skills are a form of living heritage that deeply connects with the indigenous community and reflects a community’s history, values, customs, and social practices. Presently, due to globalization, the traditional cuisines and culinary practices are on the verge of getting lost or losing their authenticity. Hence, it is important to preserve and restore the indigenous food and culinary traditions, especially for future generations, and this can be done through culinary tourism development by introducing the local cuisines and culinary traditions or rituals as a tourist attraction factor. The conservation of culinary traditions through tourism can be strategized and innovatively managed by applying a community-based living heritage approach, thus involving the indigenous population or local residents in creating opportunities for tourists to taste traditional cuisines as well as participate in activities like culinary trails and cooking classes. This, in turn, helps in generating employment and additional sources of income for the local families. Maharashtra is one such state in India that has taken the initiative to develop and popularize culinary tourism with the purpose of preserving the varieties of traditional cuisines prepared by the local population using indigenous ingredients, as well as for the creation of an additional source of employment and income generation for the local people. With this background, this chapter aims to understand, through the lens of cultural anthropology, the role of tourism in the preservation and restoration of indigenous cuisines and culinary traditions as a form of living heritage through the active involvement of the local population. The study mainly uses qualitative methodology based on observation, interviews, and secondary data sources like various literature, reports, and blogs. The first section of the paper discusses the link between the cuisines and culinary tradition as a form of living heritage, tourism, and its implications. This is followed by an overview of the traditional cuisines and culinary traditions of Maharashtra and how it holds ample scope and opportunities for the development of culinary tourism. The various schemes and initiatives for the development of culinary or gastronomy tourism in Maharashtra are presented in the following section. The paper ends by highlighting the conclusions drawn about the role of culinary tourism in protecting the traditional cuisines as living heritage and the significance of the community-based approach for achieving economic and cultural sustainability.