A Ripon pie maker is aiming to have the humble British Pie officially recognised and added to the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage as a national food of Britain..
Yorkshire Handmade Pies enlisted the help of the former Prime Minister, and current Richmond MP Rishi Sunak, who supported the move by contacting Lisa Nandy, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, who has agreed that pies can be nominated for a UK shortlist to be submitted to UNESCO.
Every year countries can nominate one item to be considered for inclusion in the Representative List of Items of Intangible Cultural Heritage. In the past this has included successful applications such as Neapolitan Pizza in Italy, Belgian Beer, and the French Baguette.
Founder of Yorkshire Handmade Pies, James Sturdy said:
Pies have a long and fascinating history within British Culture. Baked into our culinary DNA, they have fed everyone from the working class to aristocracy over many centuries. British pies reflect not just the national cuisine, but also regional speciality, with many areas of the UK having created their own unique pies. It’s important to preserve our heritage and, as a fundamental part of that, we believe the Great British pie should officially be put forward as one of our national dishes and recognised on the global stage.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has written back and invited the company to put forward its nomination which will be added to the UK’s inventory for consideration at the back end of the year.
The campaign also coincides with British Pie Week which runs from 3rd to the 9 of March 2025.
James added:
Every year, during the first week of March, we celebrate this iconic British food. So, I am hoping pie lovers from across the country will join us in our bid to see the pie recognised as a national dish of Britain.
