Alimenti, Zurino (Italian Export Forum). from fake made in Italy 100 billion

“Italy is the undisputed world leader in food. A fact, which however is perennially threatened by the so-called “Italian Sounding”. This was stated by Lorenzo Zurino, President of the Italian Export Forum, on the sidelines of Tuttofood, in these days at the Milan Fair. Our food heritage is in fact put at risk by all those fakes that, in the world, produce a turnover of over 100 billion euros as a result of “international piracy” which improperly uses words, colors, locations, images, denominations and recipes that refer to Italy, for foods that have nothing to do with the national production system. In fact, two out of three “tricolor” agri-food products abroad are fake, without any production link with Italy. The consequences are also evident from the employment aspect of our country: according to Coldiretti, through the fight against the fake Made in Italy, as many as 300 thousand jobs could be created. The most imitated products range from mozzarella, at the top of the ranking, to two other classics from the world of Italian cheeses such as Parmigiano Reggiano and Grana Padano. There are many variations that in the world try to pass themselves off as Parmigiano or Grana: Parmesan, Parmesao or Reggianito. Other cheeses under attack are Provolone and Pecorino Romano, very widespread especially in America, from the USA to Argentina. In the list of the most copied also salami, mortadella, ready-made sauces, Genoese pesto but also drinks such as Prosecco or Chianti.Despite the continuous attacks, the value of our agri-food exports is around 50 billion a year. It is not unthinkable to think of bringing Italian agri-food exports to 100 billion euros within the next 10 years. To do this, it will be necessary to resolve the “Italian Sounding” issue and strengthen the Italian port system, together with advantageous pricing policies in relation to the cost of containers. All this will facilitate the achievement of this ambitious but not impossible goal “.