The 96th International Alba White Truffle Fair, taking place from 10 October to 6 December 2026, goes beyond celebrating one of Italy’s most renowned gastronomic treasures. This year’s theme, “Authentic Relationships”, highlights the Fair’s broader commitment to connecting people, places and cultural heritage.

BIA took part in the official press conference launching the event, an opportunity to reflect on how culture, landscape, tourism and heritage can work together within a shared vision for sustainable territorial development.

Far beyond its gastronomic dimension, the Fair continues to establish itself as a cultural platform capable of bringing together communities, institutions, landscapes and visitors.

Culture and territory: heritage that creates connections

The theme chosen for this edition places at its centre a concept that is increasingly important for those working in cultural planning: the relationship between people and their territory.

The Fair celebrates not only gastronomy, but also the cultural and natural landscape, tangible and intangible heritage, collective memory and local communities.

This vision is perfectly reflected in the three UNESCO recognitions that characterise the Alba area: the Vineyard Landscape of Piedmont: Langhe-Roero and Monferrato World Heritage Site, Alba UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy, and The Search for and Extraction of Truffles in Italy, inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

International tourism and new ways of experiencing the territory

One of the key themes emerging from the presentation was the continued international growth of the Fair.

While many destinations are facing increasingly challenging tourism scenarios, the Alba White Truffle Fair continues to attract visitors from all over the world.

This success is not driven solely by the appeal of the truffle itself, but by the ability to offer a comprehensive cultural experience that combines gastronomy, heritage, landscape and hospitality, allowing visitors to discover the territory while engaging with its local communities.

A model of cultural planning

The press conference highlighted how the International Alba White Truffle Fair has become a model of territorial development based on collaboration.

Public institutions, professional associations, cultural organisations, universities, foundations and businesses work together to develop shared projects connecting culture, tourism, the environment and the local economy.

This ability to build lasting relationships is one of the Fair’s defining characteristics, transforming a single event into an ongoing process of territorial enhancement.

BIA’s contribution

Among the projects presented during the press conference was “Food and Art”, the podcast conceived and produced by BIA for the Italian Central Institute for Intangible Heritage (ICPI), which will become part of the cultural programme of the 96th edition of the Fair.

The podcast explores food as a cultural phenomenon, placing it in dialogue with art, landscape, design, literature, UNESCO heritage, cinema and sustainability.

The project broadens the narrative of the Fair beyond gastronomy, offering new perspectives for understanding cultural heritage and the identity of the territory.