The recovery of tourism after the
pandemic has boosted the Italian food industry, which has become
Italy's top single asset to the tune of a record 580 billion
euros in the last year despite the energy crisis linked to the
war in Ukraine, farmers' group Coldiretti said in a report out
Friday.
The report, titled 'Food and tourism, Italy Winning', will be
presented at a meeting in Milan later Friday with Tourism
Minister Daniela Santanchè and Agriculture and Food Sovereignty
Minister Francesco Lollobrigida.
The return to full activity of catering and hospitality
activities, from restaurants to agriturismi, has had a major
impact on the Italian food supply chain, which is now worth
almost a quarter of the national GDP, the report said.
The huge production chain employs some four million workers in
740 farms and other agricultural firms, 70,000 food
manufacturing facilities, as well as 330,000 hospitality and
restaurant firms and 230,000 retail outlets, Coldiretti said.
Food has become the main item of the household budgets of
Italians and foreigners holidaying in Italy with around one
third of spending on meals out but also for buying food
products, gastronomic and wine specialities and souvenirs, said
the report.
Foreigners who vacation in Italy continue to seek Italian
products once they get home with a major boost to food exports,
said Coldiretti.
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