Food and cooking has been a thing of controversy since the origin of humanity. Different people and culture tend to have their own ideal version of cooking. We humans are a proud lots! we tend to believe in our own ideas and make others see reasons why our own way of doing things is the best. Even most traditions who have some particular food native to them, have actually lost credits for their invention because what they think they've invented have been lost or reformed by others. That is why most cultures have gone extra mile to make sure their heritage or inventions are not lost to history or to the hands of other.
Lebanon and Israel: The hummus humdinger
In 2008, the president of the Association of Lebanese Industrialists filed a lawsuit against Israel for violation of food copyright laws. They said hummus humdinger which is popularly known as "Mezze" (appetizers in Lebanese), is native to the Lebanese not Israel. The Lebanon's government even petitioned the European Union to classify hummus as a uniquely Lebanese cuisine.
It was said that this food was sold in the western stores under the label "Israeli cuisine". Sales that was estimated to be at around US$1 billion a year. Both countries decided to take their legal disagreement to the kitchen to prove their claims in an uncommon way.
The Israelis made a Guinness world record in January 2010 by creating the largest plate of the dish putting together some 4,082 kilos of Hummus. That same year in the month of may, about 300 Lebanese chefs responded to the conflict by breaking the Israelis record. They made 10,450-kilo of the dish, Creating their own Guinness world records.
To cut the story short, there was actually no real winner because the origin of the food has been traced to the time of Saladin, a 12th-century sultan in Damascus, well before the establishment of the states of Israel and Lebanon.
Chile and Peru: The potato battle
The year 2008 became the official year when Peru and Chile battled over the origin of the spud potato. Although the conflict had started centuries before then. The spud dispute began when Chile's agriculture minister said 99% of the world's potatoes derive from spuds are native to Chile.
Peru, where the potato is a source of national pride, bristled at the claim and said it originated from a part of the Andes near Lake Titicaca, most of which is located in modern- day Peru. Bolivia made it a tripartite quarrel, when it claimed to have found traces of older tuber in its soil.
Andres Contreras, a researcher at Chile's Austral University in Valdivia, said archaeological studies have found the first evidence of human consumption of potatoes dating back 14,000 years in southern Chile, long before evidence emerges of spud consumption in Peru.
Australia and New Zealand: The pavlova spat
The origin of this nice dessert topped with fresh fruit and whipped cream is the center of a dispute between Australia and New Zealand. The Australian National Dictionary describes pavlova as "a famous Australian dessert, named due to its mouth-watering properties." However, this was disclaimed by New Zealand Prime Minister saying "it is ridiculous regarding Pavlova as an Australian dessert". Several research were conducted to find the truth.
Professor Helen Leach, a culinary anthropologist at New Zealand's University of Otago, compiled a library of cookbooks containing 667 pavlova recipes. She said "I can find at least 21 pavlova recipes in New Zealand cookbooks by 1940, which was the year the first Australian ones appeared," she concluded.
To challenge Aussies over the dish's origin, Kiwi students at the Eastern Institute of Technology New Zealand, created the world's largest pavlova (64 meters long) in 2005. In 2010, a 50-square-meter rugby-shaped pavlova (made with 10,000 egg whites and more than 600 kilos of sugar) was cooked in Christchurch.
South Korea and Japan: The kimchi conflict
Kimchi is a spicy dish made of fermented pickled vegetable dish with ginger, red pepper and garlic. The dispute broke out in 1996 when Japan proposed designating Japanese kimchi, called "kimuchi," an official Atlanta Olympic food.
Japan had a different version of this cuisine which has a much different taste from the Korean's (it's less spicy and has artificial flavor additives). This concerns the South Koreans because the amount of Japanese kimuchi exported, which is cheaper, exceeds that of Korea.
In reaction to this alleged copyright, Korea petitioned the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization's Codex Alimentarius commission to establish an international standard for kimchi. Japan claimed that Korea has no monopoly on kimchi.
However, several studies and investigations have actually justified Korea as the real owners of the food but Japan on the other hand are reluctant to admit.
Slovenia and Austria: The pork sausage argument
Slovenia and Austria was recently involved in a food feud. The spicy delicacy that Slovenia calls "Kranjska klobasa" and its neighbor Austria called "krainerwurst." Which literally mean pork sausage prepared with garlic and pepper as it main ingredient. Th dispute between these two nations erupted after Slovenes attempted to get the EU special protected status over the food. It claimed the sausage was invented in the Kranjska region in northern Slovenia in the 19th century.
Austrians argued that the pork delicacy was first produced in Austria by the name kaesekrainer. The Austria Chamber of Commerce, the Patent Office and the Ministry of Agriculture united to sue Slovenia that they will not sit and watch another take credits over its own invention.
However, there was no real winner of the case because both nations decided to act maturely. Both nations decided to put an end to the conflict by accepting each other's products in June 2012.
Slovenia said it would register its product with the European Union's (EU) protected designation of origin, but agreed that Austrian producers could keep selling their versions under the German names.
