Created in 1996 by Slow Food the Ark of Taste is an online catalogue that is growing day by day, gathering alerts from people who see the flavors of their communities disappear, taking with them a piece of the culture and history of which they are a part.

The Ark of Taste travels the world collecting small-scale quality productions that belong to the cultures, history and traditions of the entire planet: an extraordinary heritage of fruits, vegetables, animal breeds, cheeses, breads, sweets and cured meats…

The Ark was created to point out the existence of these products and draw attention to the risk that they might disappear within a few generations.

In some cases, products need to be rediscovered and put back on the table, and producers need to be supported and to have their stories told; in others, such as the case of endangered wild species, it might be better to eat less or none of them in order to preserve them and favor their reproduction.

Thanks to the contribution of many people, we have catalogued thousands of products so far, but there is still a long way to go. The MedSNAIL project is trying to put products on the Ark by locating them in their countries.