The “State secret” on foreign foods arriving in Italy falls and it will finally be possible to know the name of the companies that import food from abroad, on which 84% of health alarms triggered in Italy in 2019 depend. Every 6 months the Ministry of Health must publish all data relating to food, feed and animals destined for consumption arriving from abroad in the “Transparent Administration” section. This is foreseen by a provision of the Simplifications decree, against the devastating phenomenon of fake Italian, which represents an economic damage for the Italian supply chains and for the health of all of us.
In fact, the provision includes a rule that finally ensures maximum transparency on agri-food flows, guaranteeing the long-awaited protection for producers.
A clear signal, especially in these difficult times for the economy, in which bringing the added value of transparency to the market becomes essential to enable consumers to make informed choices, even in the supermarket.
Overcoming the “state secret” on information relating to health is an important premise for achieving the development of entirely Italian agricultural chains, victims of unfair competition from both foreign companies, but also the “friendly fire” of national companies that, through brands, distinctive signs and advertising, have misappropriate the “Made in Italy” wording for years.
The next battle will be to extend labeling to the entire EU agri-food sector. This measure, as imaginable, has been widely opposed for years by sector lobbies.
Despite everything and everyone, a historic wall of silence is demolished and the deception of foreign products passed off as Italians is put down, also to allow more timely interventions in the event of food alarms.
It is no coincidence that in 2019 in Italy there was more than one food alarm per day, for a total of 371 notifications sent to the European Union. Of these, only 58 (16%) concerned products with national origin, while 162 came from other European Union countries (43%) and 151 from non-EU countries (41%). Over four out of five products that are dangerous for food safety come from abroad (84%).
Fabrizio Capaccioli
Managing Director ASACERT
“A path that proceeds not without difficulty, that of safeguarding and promoting true Italian agri-food products” says Fabrizio Capaccioli, creator of ITA0039 | 100% Italian Taste Certification. “The complexities lie in the identification and rapid traceability of products at risk, in order to break the unhealthy gear that generates health problems, in the worst case, but also in the long term, a decline in consumer confidence, which causes a generalized cut in spending and which has often unjustly put entire production sectors in difficulty, with job losses. We were among the first with the ITA0039 Protocol, in agreement with Coldiretti to take the defense of the true Italian agri-food heritage, our network is ready to link in a single gesture authentic and certified Italian restaurateurs, certified producers and, of course, consumers in search of healthy and inimitable Italian good food. It’s just one step, but the road is finally the right one!”
