>Maybe the market is telling us that we don't need so many cuisines. Think about it: There are probably 100+ distinct cuisines in the world. How many people have tried every single one? How many people have gotten tired of a substantial fraction of that 100+, and are seeking further novelty? Probably not very many.

Japan is notorious for protecting and marketing regional/local cuisine nationwide and they're quite successful at it.

Hell, they've succeeded at making global food vendors sell Japan-only food (all them wild Kit-Kats, Christmas KFC, etc.).

The question isn't posed on the consumers, it's posed on the suppliers. Do the suppliers want to preserve their way of eating or not?