In the days of the heated controversy over synthetic food, forcefully rejected by Italy, in Berlin there is talk of agro-food from our country. In fact, it startedItalian Agri-Innovation for Sustainability”, a series of meetings dedicated to agro-food programmes. The initiative takes place on the occasion of the 7th edition of Week of Italian Cuisine in the World and is promoted by the Italian Embassy in Berlin. It is characterized by the level of sustainable research and experimentation achieved by our food. From the Mediterranean diet to the diffusion of "Made in Italy" along the entire agri-food chain with technologies and the use of clean energy sources, Italy is climbing in the European rankings. The opening of the initial day was entrusted to the Italian Ambassador in Berlin Armando Varricchio. “Agriculture is not only the basis of Italian cuisine, but it is also an area of decisive importance in the fight against climate change,” he said. Direct or indirect investments in the sector are on the rise and the effects of the production transition can be seen both from a qualitative and quantitative point of view. The export Italian at the end of the year will reach 60 billion euros with hundreds of companies that have lowered climate-changing emissions from their companies. In fact, innovations reduce the negative effects on the atmosphere, given that the agricultural sector is responsible for about 24% of the total greenhouse gas emissions.
The Italian sustainable supply chain appreciated in the world
We are grappling with regenerative agriculture that is appreciated and recognized as valid by the partners of the German initiative: the Future Food Institute, the University of Roma Tre and Slow Food. Many experts and operators present on the first day also spoke of the effects of the war in Ukraine on the European food system. Nina Wolff, president of Slow Food Deutschland said that "food is both the victim and the cause of the climate crisis and ecological collapse". In the future, the need for a radical transformation of our way of producing and consuming will increase. A transition “from highly processed industrial products towards sustainably grown foods with biological diversity”. As a sign of concreteness on Italian agri-food in Berlin there are 12 startups active in the area of food tech. Their representatives will visit innovation centres, incubators and accelerators that make Berlin one of the leading German startup ecosystems. An exchange of experiences that will enrich the Made in Italy: with the general aim of strengthening short and transparent producer-consumer value chains, as Woff herself recalled. In this respect, the Italian panorama expresses confidence in a complicated context, but in one year it has increased exports by over 20% with products with DOP or IGT brands. Europe, with Germany and France in the lead, ranks first among the continents that import excellent agri-food products. Topics addressed also in two thematic sessions by Prof Carlo Alberto Pratesi, President ofEuropean Institute for Innovation and Sustainability and Full Professor of the Roma Tre University.
