Coming this December, traditional Japanese cuisine, washoku, is likely to be designated an Intangible Cultural Heritage, if UNESCO's voting on the heritage list goes as it should. If that happens, washoku would join 21 other important Japanese cultural assets such as kabuki, noh, and traditional Ainu dance already accepted by UNESCO. This would be the first Japanese food item to make that list, joining French cuisine, the Mediterranean diet, Mexican cuisine and Turkish ceremonial dishes. Japanese cuisine is indeed unique in the world and deserves a recognized status.

The UNESCO designation is aimed at protecting social customs, rituals, craftsmanship and other traditions inherited from the past that may not have a concrete, physical form.

Protecting washoku not only gives Japan's culture a boost in advance of the 2020 Olympics, but also helps to counteract the negative image of food safety after the Fukushima nuclear crisis.