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UNESCO

Lose your bottle and face fine: Prosecco police

Bars and restaurants in Veneto will be slapped with a fine if they serve the region's Prosecco DOC from anything but a bottle after the Italian government launched a campaign to protect its treasured tipple.

Published: 2 July 2013 10:25 CEST
Lose your bottle and face fine: Prosecco police
Only Prosecco served by the bottle is allowed in Veneto. Photo: Quinn Dombrowski/Flickr

The country’s agriculture ministry has sought the help of 28-year-old Andrea Battistella, a graduate in the science of wine, to roam the region and impose fines on anyone serving the sparkling wine from a 'carafe' or on tap, local newspaper Il Gazzettino reported.

The news marks the latest move to preserve the quality and standards of Prosecco DOC.

Producers have also applied to have the wine-producing hills protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, citing 200 years of Prosecco production as a key reason.

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UNESCO

Venice may be put on Unesco endangered list if cruise ships not banned

The UN art heritage agency has said it may put Venice on its ‘endangered’ list if the lagoon city does not permanently ban cruise ships from docking there.

Published: 22 June 2021 12:53 CEST
Updated: 22 June 2021 17:27 CEST
Venice may be put on Unesco endangered list if cruise ships not banned
Photo: Miguel Medina/AFP

The Italian lagoon city, along with Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the city of Budapest, and Liverpool’s waterfront may be put on the list of “World Heritage in Danger,” meaning they risk being removed from Unesco’s prestigious list of world heritage sites completely.

Unesco said on Monday the issue will be discussed at a meeting of its World Heritage Committee, which oversees the coveted accolade, in Fuzhou, China, on July 16-31.

It “would be a very serious thing for our country” if Venice was removed, said Italy’s Culture Minister Dario Franceschini on Monday.

READ ALSO: ‘More local, more authentic’: How can Italy move toward responsible tourism in future?

The MSC Orchestra cruise ship arrives in Venice on June 3rd, 2021. Photo: ANDREA PATTARO/AFP

Participants at the China meeting will make the final decision on the deletion and warning proposals, and the agency could demand urgent action on cruise ships from the Italian government by next February.

There has long been concern about the impact of cruise ships on the city’s delicate structures and on the lagoon’s fragile ecosystem.

READ ALSO: Hundreds demonstrate against cruise ships’ return to Venice

The Italian government appeared to have passed a ban on cruise ships docking in Venice earlier this year – but the giant vessels continue to arrive in the city.

The government’s decree in fact did not constitute an immediate ban.

Instead, it said a plan for docking cruise ships outside Venice’s lagoon must be drawn up and implemented.

In the meantime, the ships will continue sailing through the lagoon and docking at the city’s industrial port, which has been the landing site for them since last December.

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