Belgium is trying to cash in on its chips with a UNESCO world heritage bid.<br /><br /> Long cited as French, Belgians have launched a petition to get the humble fry recognised by the global body as one of mankind’s cultural treasures.<br /><br /> The issue has even united the quarrelling French and Flemish speaking communities in the country.<br /><br /> “There is a phenomenon we share, German-speakers, French-speakers, Dutch-speakers, and it’s a cone of fries but it’s also this culture which surrounds it. It’s a good product, but it’s a way of living, a ‘Belgitude,” explained Bernard Lefevre, National President of the Belgian Union of Fritkot owners UNAFRI.<br /><br /> “A cone of potato chips is Belgium in miniature,” he added.<br /><br /> The petition is gaining momentum during ‘Fries Week’ launched by the Minister of Agriculture from December 1-7.<br /><br /> #selfrites la semaine de la frite!!! pic.twitter.com/s43Fx1IZE4— Thomas LECLERCQ (@ManofGoodwill) December 2, 2014<br /> <br /><br /> La semaine de la #frite, ça commence lundi! http://t.co/TUxby4kAOL pic.twitter.com/8a3TWXYMtZ— AWEX Agri-food (@AWEXAgrifood) November 28, 2014<br /> <br /><br /> Baraque à frites "parlementaire" installée devant le #ParlWal, à l'occasion de la "Semaine de la frite" pic.twitter.com/zHfUoxjXPt— Rudy Hermans (@RudyHermans) November 26, 2014<br /> <br /><br /> Twice fried in beef fat, the delicacy was said to pre-date similar potato recipes across the border. Belgium blames US soldiers for wrongly attributing the fried potato chip to France. However, historians say it is difficult to prove the origins. <br /><br /> Even French tourists at the famous Maison Antoine Friterie in Brussels admit that the Belgian version has a certain je ne sais quoi.<br /><br /> “The fries are crunchy but on the inside they’re soft, they’re really different from what we’re used to,” commented Nicolas Perrin from Paris.<br /><br /> The fries are so popular that it can take up to 30 minutes to get served at some of the capital’s chip shops.<br /><br /> Traditionally eaten from a paper cone and served with a variety of sauces, fries are served at the ‘fritkot’. These chip vans and shacks number 5,000 in Belgium. That makes them ten times more numerous than fast-food chain McDonalds.<br /><br /> Should the Belgians manage to get their petition recognised, they will join the UNESCO list of 314 items which include Argentine Tango, Turkish coffee and Chinese calligraphy.
