The food and beverage industry in Italy: structures and trends at regional and national level

For the second consecutive year, CREA - Policies and Bioeconomics delves into the cognitive elements linked to one of the most relevant production sectors of the Italian manufacturing system, publishing the Report "The food and beverage industry in Italy: structures and trends at regional and national"

This sector represents not only the stage of the supply chain with which the agricultural phase is immediately interconnected, but it is also a symbol of Italian culture and tradition recognized throughout the world, an essential component of Made in Italy.

These are almost 70,000 companies that produce 10% of the added value and 12% of the employment of the entire national manufacturing sector.

The products of this industry also play an extremely important role in Italy's agri-food exchanges with foreign markets, with a weight that exceeds 85% in the case of exports , a share that rises to 88% if the group alone is considered of products that strictly belong to the so-called Made in Italy.
The top five products exported from Italy come from processing in the food and beverage industry.

This industry has, therefore, contributed to the almost continuous process of improving sales of national agri-food products on foreign markets, which has led to record values in recent years.
Italy is also one of the leading EU-27 countries in terms of turnover, businesses, employees and added value of the food and drink industry.

However, in the current context of global geopolitical uncertainty , the sector is today facing various challenges ranging from the need to maintain competitiveness on international markets to that of responding to growing consumer concerns regarding the sustainability and health of food , without neglecting the need to continuously innovate to meet new market trends.

Although this Report does not have the ambition to investigate these aspects, it aims to provide a basic cognitive contribution, especially in terms of the structural framework and economic trends of the various sectors , which acquires greater relevance precisely in light of these challenges.

A significant part of the volume is dedicated to the regional analysis of the food and beverage industry , given the strong differentiation of its role and degree of specialization at a territorial level.

The in-depth analysis shows the strong concentration of companies in the food and beverage industry in just five regions with the North holding 70% of the turnover , as well as showing the highest birth rate.

The Report also highlights how the dynamics of the food and beverage industry are reflected in regional economies not only in the agri-food sector but in the entire manufacturing sector. (Source: https:// www.crea.gov.it/ )