When a product is nominated for the Ark, it must be at risk in some way or belong to a supply chain that, for some reason (to be explained in the nomination), is threatened to the extent that it might disappear from the market. A traditional product’s risk of disappearing can be considered imminent when the knowledge and skills necessary to produce it belong to one or very few producers, mainly elderly. It is not enough to have a written recipe or simple oral explanation in order to produce a cheese, cured meat, or traditional dessert: Traditional processing methods are the work of artisans and learning the techniques involved requires working with them for years. One must learn specific skills and acquire an indefinable but necessary sensitivity to be able to maintain the quality of a product even when the conditions in which the production takes place (the temperature and humidity of the places of work and aging, the time of year, the state of the animals’ health, etc.) change. Production line, industrial systems do not allow for individual interpretation and adaptation, but demand, on the contrary, encoded processes and the use of technology in most stages of production. The risk of a product disappearing is also real when that product is grown, raised, or made only for home consumption, or when the introduction of ultra-hygienic laws swiftly renders traditional equipment, materials, and facilities that are important for the characterization of a product illegal. Risk is also real when the number of units still grown or raised is small (a few hundred or thousand). Reversing a process of genetic erosion is difficult when numbers are so low and requires a commitment from institutions, experts, and funders to support breeders and finance recovery projects. The risk is potential—in other words, medium or long term—when the social situation and ecological situations are such that a reduction in the quantity of the product or the number of producers can be predicted for the coming years. The signs of such a risk are many and diverse: changing trends in consumption; a market that no longer appreciates the product and pays very little, gradually reducing profitability; the depopulation of the production area as people able to traditionally produce the product emigrate in search of new livelihoods; the breakdown of intergenerational knowledge transfer; the alteration or disappearance of rural ecosystems and landscapes; a loss of support from national and international agricultural and food policy makers; and scarce attention from institutions. The looming threat of industrial products similar to the traditional ones, which confuse consumers and lead to homogenization and standardization, can quickly expel traditional products and producers from the market, as they are more vulnerable and have less support from advertising and marketing.
