(Tiper Stock Exchange) – In 2021 there are over 86,000 certified operators in the food quality agri-food sector, a slight increase compared to 2020. This is what an Istat report reveals, explaining that the Sardinia is the region with the highest national share of producers (19%), fruit, vegetables and cereals are the sector with the highest number of PDO and PGI recognized products, while among the sectors, the cheese sector has the largest number of operators.
The growth of excellence in the food quality agri-food sector continues. In 2021 – reads the report – the sector will be enriched with three food products: Olio di Roma with Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) in Lazio, Peach from Delia (again with PGI) and Pistachio from Raffadali with Protected Designation of Origin (PDO ) whose production areas, in the latter two cases, extend between different municipalities in the Province of Caltanissetta and Agrigento in Sicily. But it was in 2020 that there was a surge in certifications, when 12 products entered the market, of which: one of guaranteed traditional specialty, Stg (traditional Amatriciana), five Dop products (Mozzarella di Gioia del Colle, Provola dei Nebrodi, Caper from the Aeolian Islands, Pecorino from Monte Poro and Colatura di Alici from Cetara) and six Igp (Südtiroler Schüttelbrot/Schüttelbrot Alto Adige, Rocket from Piana del Sele, Lemon from Etna, Pampepato di Terni/Panpepato di Terni, Basilicata oil and apples from Trentino). At a territorial level, Emilia-Romagna is the region with the highest number of PDO and PGI recognitions, followed by Veneto, Sicily and Lombardy.
In 2021 there was an increase in operators compared to 2020, especially among producers (+1.9%), transformers instead remain practically stationary (+0.2%). The growth mainly affects the southern regions (+2.8% for operators and +2.9% for producers). In the North the variation is +1.6% for both producers and operators, while in the Center the situation is more stationary (both +0.8%). The scenario of transformers is more varied, however they always achieve the greatest increase in the South (+2%), on the contrary in the North the variation is negative (-2%). The fresh meat, cheese and extra virgin olive oil sector had a positive impact on the results of the Mezzogiorno.
The report also shows that with 10,177 operators present iThe fresh meat sector scores in 2021, compared to 2020, a growth (+2.3%) which affects both producers (+2.1%) and processors (+2.6%). 61.3% is concentrated between Sardinia and Lazio of operators, a value that increases if we consider only the producers who, in these regions, represent 67.1% of the national total in the sector and manage 66.8% of the farms.