Italy's Prosecco hills join UNESCO World Heritage list

Italy's Prosecco hills northeast of Venice, which have been cultivated for centuries, were on Sunday added to the World Heritage list by the UN cultural organisation.

The Conegliano and Valdobbiadene hills, where the grapes that produce the famous prosecco sparking wine are grown, got the green light at a meeting of UNESCO's World Heritage Committee in Baku.

"The landscape is characterised by 'hogback' hills, ciglioni—small plots of vines on narrow grassy terraces—forests, small villages and farmland," UNESCO said in a statement announcing the decision.

"For centuries, this rugged terrain has been shaped and adapted by man."

Italy has been lobbying to have the hills, which stretch for 30 kilometres (nearly 20 miles), receive this recognition for a decade. On Sunday, the region became Italy's 55th World Heritage site.

The prosecco sparkling white, which has the highest classification available to an Italian wine, is produced in a territory spread over nine provinces in Italy's northeast.

Sales of the wine rose six percent in 2018 to 460 million bottles, of which 75 percent were exported.

Also added to the prestigious list on Sunday were eight buildings designed by US architect Frank Lloyd Wright, including the Guggenheim Museum in New York.

© 2019 AFP