Italy: Country of the Year at BioFach 2007

Italy is pure enjoyment in every sense: holiday, sun, impressive countryside, but above all perfect hospitality and excellent Mediterranean cuisine – increasingly with organic ingredients. BioFach 2007 is presenting Italy as Country of the Year. The World Organic Trade Fair in the Exhibition Centre Nuremberg from 15-18 February 2007 is expecting 2,100 exhibitors from 73 nations (as at the last event) and over 37,000 visitors from over 100 countries throughout the world.

Picture: Italy is presenting itself at BioFach

Organic farming has a long tradition in Italy. The first farmers and co-operatives converted to organic in the seventies and supplied the newly opened organic food shops in Germany with highly popular oranges, lemons, rice and organic pasta. The durum wheat noodles naturally needed the popular tomato sauce, so a variety of processed tomato products developed. Not forgetting olive oil, preferably extra virgin, which enjoyed great popularity on the European organic market from an early stage. The range of Italian organic products developed rapidly in the course of the years. The choice of Mediterranean delicatessen specialities like antipasti, wines, fine cheeses and sausages or sweet delicatessen products like chestnut or fig jam is growing constantly. These products find their way into an increasing number of specialist shops and supermarkets throughout Europe. Organic farmers in Italy manage around one million ha of agricultural land. Around 50,000 companies – according to information from SINAB (Sistema d’Informazione Nazionale Sull’Agricoltura Biologica) – produce, process or trade organic food. 
In the case of wine, olive oil and pasta, the most important country exported to is Germany, followed by Great Britain and France. According to the information supplied by Fabio Lunati from the Nomisma Institute, 88 % of wine, 42 % of fruit and vegetables and 30 % of bakery goods are exported.

The more prosperous north of the country currently tends to show more growth in the sale of organic products. Although the south and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia have the largest share in organic cultivation, the consumers there still only show moderate interest in organic products.
According to estimates by the Italian organic market expert Roberto Pinton (environmental and organic portal www.greenplanet.net), domestic market sales in 2005 amounted to some 1.7 billion Euros, with exports worth 700 million Euros. This figure of 2.4 billion Euros means Italy is one of the most important European organic markets. In comparison, sales in Germany, Europe’s biggest organic market, were some 3.9 billion Euros in 2005. Italian supermarket chains are registering moderate growth rates for organic products. The specialist trade, including many organic supermarkets, can even boast two-figure growth rates. In Pinton’s opinion, the organic food shops hold the largest market share with 45 %, followed by the conventional retail food trade (40 %), bulk consumers like canteens or refectories (10 %) and direct marketers (5 %). Direct marketing also includes, for example, 185 organic weekly markets. Organic products constitute 1.3 % of the total food market.

According to information from the Institute Nomisma, the number of farmers, producers, wholesalers and retailers who are involved with organics increased last year from 40,965 to 44,733. However, this significant growth is attributable less to strong market growth than to the proposed opportunity for agricultural grants. This is the reason why many farms, in southern Italy in particular, have begun to convert to organic cultivation. All this is a good sign that there will be further positive development in the boot-shaped country.

There are about 1,000 organic food shops and over 100 organic supermarkets in Italy. The franchise chain NaturaSì (picture), which also operates four organic supermarkets in Spain, owns 44 of these. The company also has two organic restaurants, two butcher’s shops named CarneSi and a wellness centre. NaturaSi increased its sales by 15 % in 2005. The company Brio, in which the organic farmers hold the majority of shares, is the largest Italian trading company at producer level. It achieved sales of 29 million Euros in 2005 and intended to add another six million Euros in 2006. The food chains Esselunga, Carrefour, Billa/Rewe, Conad, Crai, Despar/Spar, Selex, Todis and Pam also stock a good range of organic products.

Large organic campaign attracts attention. Biobenessere, which is equivalent to “organic wellness”, is the name of a 7.5 million Euro project (co-financed by the EU) that has generated considerable publicity in Italy since 2005 (www.biobenessere.it). As many as 11,000 promotion days with tastings and price campaigns have taken place in supermarkets or organic food shops and have reached more than 2.1 million people. The organizer is the regional organic farmers association Prober from Emilia Romagna which, with about 4,000 members, is the biggest of its kind in Italy (www.prober.it). More than 150 whole-page advertisements, 100 TV and radio spots and stands at exhibitions and conferences provided around 500,000 contacts, which open up new Europe-wide business opportunities for organic companies.

In addition, a number of trade magazines and Internet portals in Italy ensure a high level of information. A whole range of specialist magazines ensures a high level of information in Italy. “Aam Terra Nuova” has been published since the 1970s. It has its origins in an initiative addressing alternative nutrition, agriculture, medicine and the environment. The publisher, in Florence, also brings out the magazine “Salute e” (Health is) and books on these topics. “AzBio” is a monthly magazine dealing with organic agriculture and is published by Sole 24 Ore Edagricole in Bologna. It addresses both agriculture and marketing. The magazine “Bioagricutura” is published by the Organic Association AIAB and is aimed mainly at producers. The publisher Terra e Sole brings out the magazine “Econauta”. “Mangiarsanao” is a monthly lifestyle food magazine that also deals with lots of organic topics. The popular yearbook “Tutto Bio” has been brought out regularly since 1994 by Rosa Maria Bertino and Achille Mingozzi from the publisher Bio Bank.

Naturally, information via the internet has increased greatly in recent years: “Bollettino Bio”, published by Greenplanet.net, has become one of the most important instruments of the organic movement in Italy. Greenplanet.net currently has nearly 20,000 subscribers. As well as “Bolletino Bio”, Greenplanet produces a newsletter every two months for regional associations and the monthly review of books “Ecolibrando”.