This dissertation examines how people, places, and food are shaped through geographically certified food designations, focusing on how standardisation influences regional and national identity. Grounded in Science and Technology Studies and drawing on Performance Studies, Queer Theory, and post-Structuralism, I explore the material and symbolic practices that construct and contest authenticity. Food emerges here as both artifact and symbol, with its physical properties serving as evidence of intangible qualities like tradition, belonging, and expertise. The dissertation focuses on three interrelated cases: Slow Food and New Nordic Cuisine as narratives of the past and future; Prosciuttopoli and the genetic mapping of ‘authentic’ national bodies; and Welcome Tortelli and the codification of undefined objects. These cases yield three theoretical contributions: the haunted sociotechnical imaginary, the immaterial-semiotic artefact, and anti-empirical objects as tools for expertise. Bringing together historical, regulatory, and cultural dimensions, this dissertation argues that food is far more than biological sustenance – it is a contested site of meaning, power, and identity. It contributes to conversations about tradition, standardisation, and the cultural politics of food in a globalised world.