Between 18-21 May 2026, Dobrogea joined twenty awarded and candidate regions from across Europe and the world at IGCAT’s 32nd World Regions of Gastronomy Platform Meeting, hosted in Crete, European Region of Gastronomy 2026.
Organised by the International Institute of Gastronomy, Culture, Arts and Tourism (IGCAT) together with the Region of Crete and PLOIGOS Educational Development Company, the meeting brought together regional representatives, international experts and stakeholders focused on sustainable food systems, cultural heritage and community well-being.
As a candidate for the title of European Region of Gastronomy 2029, Dobrogea was officially represented by Teodora Moraru and Carmen Ispas. For us, Crete was both a learning journey and a celebration, a chance to network with regions that have turned gastronomy into a driver of community growth, to gather ideas for our own road to 2029, and to share the importance of Dobrogea as a European region with the world.
Why We Were in Crete
Our participation had a clear purpose: to learn directly from regions that are already shaping the global conversation around food, culture and sustainability, and to bring those practices home as we build Dobrogea’s gastronomic identity for 2029.
Across three days, delegates explored how gastronomy can strengthen communities, celebrate heritage, inspire sustainable tourism, and connect research, education and local knowledge. The programme moved from the World Food Gift Challenge, where over 40 gifts from 14 regions were presented at the Aquila Atlantis Hotel in Heraklion, to guided market walks, a visit to the Elounda Women Weavers’ Association “Porfyra”, and hands-on cooking workshops crafting skioufichta pasta and other Cretan specialities.
The second day was devoted to biodiversity and innovation at the Botanical Garden of Crete, where regions shared best practices on preserving local biodiversity, sustainable agriculture and citizen engagement. The third day took us to FORTH (Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas), where researchers presented cutting-edge work on food systems, from predicting olive oil sensory attributes with machine learning to bottle-level traceability and applied research bridging science, production and public health. These exchanges are exactly the kind of inspiration that will inform Dobrogea’s initiatives in the years ahead.
A Winning Story from the Danube Delta
The meeting culminated in the World Food Gift Challenge Award Ceremony, celebrating the 15 winners of the 2026 edition during the Gala Dinner hosted by the Region of Crete. And among them… Dobrogea.
At just 26 years old, Alex Onofrei, a boatwright (marangoz) and keeper of a craft on the verge of disappearing, won the Best Educational Gift award with his project, Lotca Kit.
More than an object, the Lotca Kit is an invitation to discovery. It is about the lotcă, the traditional fishing boat of the Danube Delta, about wood, patience, and the hands that bring a generations-old tradition to life. It is about how heritage can be understood through play, curiosity and experiences that bring children closer to our places and our stories.
We are delighted to see how an almost-forgotten craft finds new forms of expression, and how a young man from Dobrogea proves that tradition does not belong to the past… It can inspire the future.
Congratulations, Alex! Your story shows us that when passion meets the roots of a place, the result can cross borders and bring international recognition to an entire community.
From the Danube Delta to Europe. From tradition to the generations to come.
You can find the lotcă model here: marangoz.ro
What We Bring Home
From the foraging culture of the Botanical Garden to the laboratories of FORTH, we witnessed how tradition and forward-thinking research can coexist to shape resilient food systems.
For Dobrogea, this Platform Meeting was another important step in building bridges between cultures, communities and regions, and in promoting gastronomy not only as nourishment, but as an expression of identity, creativity and belonging. The connections we made and the ideas we gathered will directly support our candidacy for the European Region of Gastronomy 2029.
We are also proud to continue strengthening Romania’s collective presence in the international gastronomic community, alongside inspiring examples such as Harghita – European Region of Gastronomy 2027 and Banat – European Region of Gastronomy 2028.
🌿 Dobrogea’s journey toward the title of European Region of Gastronomy 2029 continues, inspired by collaboration, guided by tradition, and fuelled by the belief that food connects us all.
