For some people museums are cultural meeting places, for others they are just boring buildings full of dusty objects. But there are also museums in Italy that are able to reconcile both sides of the coin.
We are talking about the Food Museums in the province of Parma, which came into being following a project developed in 2000 and recently joined the Audiogiro network with their free audio guides.
How the Food Museums were born
The idea stems from the desire to enhance and qualify the entire territory of the province of Parma through the most typical products of the agri-food sector, which in those very areas boast a history of excellence and are known nationally and internationally.
The museums, in the wake of a fast-growing food and wine tourism, have therefore been designed not only to tell the story of individual products, but also to involve visitors with their five senses, within emotional itineraries that include tasting, purchasing and related merchandising in general, to bring the territory and its typical products to life.
The inclusiveness of the Food Museums
Everything has been designed to be experienced in the most universal way possible: there are tour guides for the disabled, created by people with motor disabilities, meetings for Alzheimer's patients, which came to life during the lockdown, a route in Italian sign language for deaf people, installed in the Pasta Museum in Collecchio, and 360° virtual tours, which allow people to 'enter' the museums without moving.
These initiatives, of course, are flanked by more 'classic' offers, such as multilingual audio guides, didactic programmes for food education, and food and wine itineraries to discover other culinary excellences, to be travelled on foot, by bicycle and even in a camper van.
The 'Via del Gusto' (the Taste Route)
Although the initial protagonists of the project were seven, there are now nine Food Museums: the Parmesan Cheese Museum, the Parma Ham Museum, the Pasta Museum, the Culatello Museum, the Tomato Museum, the Wine Museum, the Felino Salami Museum, the Fragno Truffle Museum and the Borgotaro Porcini Mushroom Museum. In each of them it is possible to experience the history of the individual products, their production, marketing and the importance they have for the local, national and international economy.
All the museums are ideally connected by the Via del Gusto, a route that leads from the lowlands to the hills, crossing the province diagonally.
You just have to choose which one to start with: enjoy your trip... and bon appetit!
