Mazatlán is seeking international recognition as a center for gastronomy through UNESCO’s Creative Cities network.

The popular tourist destination in Sinaloa is a candidate for the network in the field of gastronomy which, the governor said, is one of the state’s attractive features.

“If there’s something that sets Sinaloa apart, and we’ve said this many times, it’s gastronomy,” said Quirino Ordaz Coppel, citing shellfish called callos, a grilled fish called zarandeo, a hot and spicy shrimp dish known as aguachile, gobernador tacos and fish called cauques as examples.

“When someone talks about those dishes they’re talking about Sinaloa.”

Mayor José Joel Bouciéguez Lizárraga said the year has been a historic one for Mazatlán, with international events such as the annual travel trade fair, Tianguis Turísticos. Now, he said, the UNESCO candidacy is something else of which citizens can be proud.

The decision whether to approve Mazatlán’s admission will be made in October 2019.

The network is composed of 180 cities in 72 countries, which are designated Creative Cities in gastronomy and six other categories: crafts and folk art, design, film, literature, music and media arts.

Mexico has six cities in the network: Mexico City and Puebla in the design category, San Cristóbal de las Casas in crafts and folk art, Guadalajara for media arts, Morelia for music and Ensenada for gastronomy.

The network was created in 2004 to promote cooperation with and among cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development. The cities work together to place creativity and cultural industries at the heart of their development plans at the local level and cooperate actively at the international level.

Source: Milenio (sp), El Sol de Mazatlán (sp)