They were five days of festivities celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana by bringing together pizza makers from all over the world, journalists, communicators and great experts in the white art to celebrate a successful journey that has made pizza the emblem of tricolor gastronomic culture. From Saturday, June 29 to Wednesday, July 3, Naples was tinged with all the shades of pizza: tastings, great wine tastings, conferences and many opportunities for dialogue that gave the Neapolitan public a journey into the taste, history and culture of this extraordinary product.
"These 40 years sanction the historicity of our Association," stresses Antonio Pace, AVPN President, and our nodal role in the communication of Neapolitan pizza in the world. Seeing together the great master pizza makers, our partners and all the friends who have always believed in our mission and without whom it would not have been possible to achieve this result, was an indescribable emotion. The great success of these days shows us how much our activity does good to pizza, both in Naples and outside, helping to strengthen the image of the pizza maker and raising the level of pizzerias around the world. With great enthusiasm we are already looking forward to the upcoming events and to our 50th anniversary, which we already feel is near. Special thanks to the City of Naples and the Campania Region, who have always made us feel at home with all our events."
Great attention was paid to the conference "Una storia verace" that closed the event by sending precise messages about what will be the next steps of AVPN and the picture that is emerging for the future of the pizza world. Because if it is true, as some of the moments of the conference recited, that the true Neapolitan pizza is the queen of the Mediterranean Diet and represents the roots of a people and a city, it is equally true that that of the pizza maker, as it emerged again during the day, remains a profession still awaiting regulation. A real vulnus for an industry that employs hundreds of thousands of professionals and develops an induced income of several tens of billions of euros a year.
On the AVPN projects front, reaffirmed willingness to abide by the new claim "no limits, no borders" in this regard, registered a boom in ratings for the live broadcast on Mont Blanc, the greatest record ever achieved by the Association. AVPN's name on the record for the highest pizza in Europe is official, an exciting moment to say the least that united pizza chefs and fans from Italy and around the world live to observe this great feat in the wonderful alpine setting of Courmayeur. Major success for all the activities scheduled during the True Neapolitan Pizza Days.
A truly rich and engaging calendar, starting with "Neapolitan Pizza Maker for one day" the masterclasses that all sold out giving an engaging and immersive experience in the craft of pizza making. Great participation also for " A True Pairing" the tasting dinners that led to the discovery of all the secrets of pizza-wine pairing, among prestigious labels lesser-known denominations selected by AIS Campania along with great pizzas made by AVPN masters, the historical faces of the Association and pizzaioli from all continents.
Conclusion in grand style in the splendid setting of the Pietrarsa National Railway Museum (which will receive an AVPN "signage" for the soon-to-open pizzeria inside the museum area) for the awards ceremony that brought together all the protagonists of the True Neapolitan Pizza Days. During the evening, presented by Patrizio Rispo, beloved face of the series "Un Posto al Sole," President Antonio Pace and Maestro Lello Esposito awarded the great creators and supporters of this extraordinary journey of AVPN with a reproduction in limited edition of the work created by the Maestro himself. Among the honorees were Mayor Gaetano Manfredi, Former Mayor of Naples and Former President of the Campania Region Antonio Bassolino, Former Minister of Agriculture Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, Senator Bartolomeo Amidei, VPN Americas President Peppe Miele, Japanese Ritsumeikan University, Vice President Massimo Di Porzio, Director Stefano Auricchio, and the founding fathers of the Association, for a grand celebration of all those who have contributed to the success of pizza of excellence in Italy and around the world.
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