Is export going down? Not for cheeses: in the last three months it grew by 3.9%
[ad_1]
Does Made in Italy show the first signs of a collapse in exports? Not the cheeses. Which not only collect a positive balance of foreign sales in volume – and not in value – of 3.9% for the first three months of 2023. But with 100,000 tonnes of product more, they achieve a growth in exports which , in just two years, has touched 6%. There is no food sector that has been able to do better.
With these positive data, the 78th assembly of Assolatte opens this morning in Milan. Five of these billions come precisely from foreign markets where the demand for Italian cheeses, despite the increase in prices, continues to grow. «Mozzarella is among the products that are registering the most important results – says the president Paolo Zanetti – today it is the most exported cheese, we send abroad 137 thousand tons, more or less 35% of the annual production, and in the last two years has seen exports grow by 28%». Mascarpone has experienced a real boom of 52%: thanks to the Asian markets, where tiramisu has become one of the most popular desserts and mascarpone is a rather essential ingredient.
Foreign consumers also like burrata, which arrives by plane to distant squares to stay fresh, whose exports have increased by 16% in the last two years. «Grana padano and Parmigiano Reggiano remain two evergreens and have grown by 10% – recalls Zanetti – but their grated versions have done even better, the sale of which has increased by 23%». About 80% of our exports are absorbed by European countries. The first for purchases is confirmed by France, where we export 128 thousand tons of cheese a year: in fact, one kilo out of five that leave Italy is destined for the French market. The other key market is that of the United States: “Here we are the undisputed leaders of the import market – recalls Zanetti – we ship 36,000 tons of cheese from Italy”.
Every day, processing companies in Italy collect something like 39 million liters of milk from the stables. «To respond to the cry of alarm from farmers in difficulty due to crazy agricultural costs – explains Zanetti – in 2022 we guaranteed them a milk price 31% higher than the previous year. At the end of 2022 the price was 45% higher than in January. As with other Made in Italy sectors, concern about high production costs has never ceased among dairy entrepreneurs: «Gas and energy – recalls Zanetti – last year cost on average 150% more than in 2021 Some bills we paid six times more than the previous year. But the problem is that even today we are on higher values than two years ago. For paper and cardboard, on the other hand, we pay invoices 60% higher than those of 2021». As if that weren’t enough, the escalation of interest rates was added: “In the space of a year, the rate of the European Central Bank, after the increases of the last few days, has grown by 700%, with disruptive effects on loans and mortgages” .
Consequently, with the increase in costs, the selling prices of cheeses and dairy products have also grown: «These are significant increases in percentage terms – admits Zanetti – but we did it gradually and they were in any case lower than the cost increases incurred. To stock up on our products, Italians spend just over eighty cents a day – Zanetti justifies himself – the increases we had to pass on therefore had a negligible impact on the spending capacity of families». According to data from Assolatte, only 2% of Italians’ monthly expenditure is dedicated to the purchase of milk, butter, cheese and yoghurt. «We are well aware that the main problems are borne by less well-off families, for whom food spending has a decisive impact on the family budget – says Zanetti – but there was no alternative to increases. The cost boom has jeopardized the stability of the national milk system. And in any case, there are other voices that have really hit the pockets of Italians».
[ad_2]
Source link
