Italy's agricultural and food exports increased by 8 per cent on 2014’s results, and by 79 per cent when compared to ten years ago, reaching a historical record of €36.9 billion in 2015.
The data emerges from an analysis by farmers association Coldiretti, based on Istat’s final data for foreign trade in 2015.
Italy’s wine exports totalled €5.4 billion in 2015 and registered growth of 80 per cent in the last decade, making it the country’s most biggest export in terms of food and drink.
Fresh produce was the second biggest category, accounting for €4.4 billion (a rise of 55 per cent over ten years), followed by pasta with €2.4 billion (82 per cent), cheeses with €2.3 billion (95 per cent), processed tomatoes with €1.5 billion (88 per cent) and olive oil with €1.4 billion (24 per cent) – tied with cold cuts.
Just compared with 2014, fresh produce sales grew by 11 per cent, with olive oil growing by 10 per cent and pasta by 9 per cent. Wine, however, grew by only 6 per cent.
The last ten years have also seen growth of products that were once considered as exclusive to other nations. This is the case of beer, whose export value has tripled (206 per cent) conquering the markets of traditional manufacturers such as the UK or Germany.
The same goes for caviar, which in a decade has gone from zero to €11.2 million, invading even the Russian market before being blocked by the embargo. Also, exports of fresh or processed mushrooms have tripled in the period (201 per cent).
Two thirds of food sales abroad were to EU countries, while the US remains the largest market outside the EU, registering a 20 per cent annual growth. Russia, on the other hand, saw a 39 per cent drop due to the embargo that has hit some food products.
One out of five Italian products exported in 2015 also carried a ‘DOC’ (or controlled designation of origin) quality control label.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
