Imports of food and beverages from Italy in January-August 2021 reached EUR 138.15 million, which is 15.4% more than in the same period last year, representatives of the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) told Interfax-Ukraine on the sidelines of the VI Italian Cuisine Week held in Kyiv.
“According to the Italian National Institute of Statistics (Istat), in 2020, imports of Italian food products to Ukraine, including drinks, grew by 26.5%, or to EUR 208 million compared to 2019. Food products now account for 12.3% of total import of Italian goods,” ITA Kyiv Office Manager Tony Corradini said.
According to the data presented by ITA, last year’s indicator is almost 2.3 times higher than the 2013 indicator and 3.8 times higher than in 2015, when a local minimum of food imports was recorded, after which it is growing continuously.
According to Corradini, Italian pasta occupies 55% of the Ukrainian market, wine over 30%. Italy is also the largest exporter of extra-virgin olive oil to Ukraine.
According to statistics, the main growth in imports of food from Italy to Ukraine this year was provided by dairy products (a rise of 39.4%, to EUR 9.95 million), pasta and bakery products (a rise of 11.6%, to EUR 16.64 million), sparkling wine, other special wines, distilled and mixed alcoholic beverages (a rise of 52.9%, to EUR 24.04 million), and wine (a rise of 17.4%, to EUR 15.05 million).
In addition to holding the new Italian cuisine week, the Italian Embassy in Ukraine and ITA, as part of the promotion of authentic Italian products, also signed a cooperation agreement with the second largest Ukrainian supermarket chain Silpo.
“Thanks to this agreement, Ukrainians will be able to buy real, high-quality Italian products, and we, in turn, will raise awareness of Italian culture and fight against such a phenomenon as “Italian ring” [when only the name of the product is Italian],” Italian Ambassador to Ukraine Pier Francesco Zadzo said.
Under the agreement, the Silpo chain, represented by 320 stores in 80 cities, will promote both existing and new Italian brands and goods to Ukrainians, as well as further develop the Positano restaurant, which is part of the Fozzy Group, Head of the Own Import Department Svitlana Schehrykovych said.
