A customs agreement to save trade between the United Kingdom and the European Union still does not exist. But for once Italy looks ahead. And so, to limit the damage caused by Brexit and protect the industrial tomato supply chain, it makes headlines the supply chain agreement signed in Rome between Coldiretti and Princes food industries (Pia), a primary processing company in the sector, based in Foggia, which belongs to the Princes group, the British leader in Food&Beverage controlled by Mitsubishi.
The first objective of the agreement, signed by the president of the agricultural organization, Ettore Prandini, by the CEO of the company, Gianmarco Laviola, in the presence of the British Ambassador in Italy, Jill Morris, is to combine efforts to support the tomato supply chain, of which Italy is the first European producer and third in the world after the United States and China, with a production of 4,6 million tons of processed raw material and a 14% share of the global market. Even if now the challenge will be to enhance the high quality and identity of tricolor sauces, peeled tomatoes and pulps and relaunch a strategic agri-food sector that is going through a difficult phase.
In fact, the next transformation campaign promises to be uphill. According to farmers' organisations, the base price of 79 euros per tonne set in 2018 failed to sufficiently compensate for production costs. And after a 6% drop in the areas invested nationwide, down to around 61 hectares, this year the supply chain could record a further decline in investments.
With this three-year agreement, farmers will be recognized a “fair” purchase price, based on the actual costs incurred to comply with the production specification and on better investment planning. Princes and Coldiretti will jointly develop an innovative digital platform based on "blockchain" technology, which for the first time in Italy will be applied to a product transformed on an industrial scale, guaranteeing traceability along the entire supply chain, with benefits in terms of safety, efficiency and automation of intercompany transactions.
The agreement also aims at strengthen the link between Italy and the United Kingdom, which shares with our country the value of its experience in contrasting forms of illegal hiring, promoting the culture of legality in a crucial supply chain for Italian exports. And if the No-Deal looms over Brexit for now, Ambassador Morris said she was in any case "confident that an agreement will be found".
A Paolo de castro, first vice-president of the Agriculture Committee of the European Parliament, connected from Strasbourg, Prandini asked to “fight within the EU against duties and other commercial forms that we do not like. Even because Italy exports over 3 billion agri-food products to the United Kingdom the year; the British one represents for us the third, fourth destination market”.
"This agreement - added the president of Coldiretti - is part of the action of responsibility from the field to the shelf promoted by Coldiretti to ensure that behind all the foods on sale there is a quality path that concerns the environment, health and work with a fair distribution of value. But the agreement with Princes also represents a precious asset driving force of development for the territories of the South, where agriculture proves to be a sector capable of guaranteeing jobs and opportunities for the future”.
"We are proud to share with Coldiretti our daily commitment to support the Apulian tomato supply chain based on the application of ethical work practices and fair and sustainable economic conditions for all our tomato suppliers - commented the CEO of Pia , Laviola – As part of our commitment, we believe that this 'supply chain contract' is a further acceleration and a milestone for the future of the entire sector”.
In the sFoggia plant, which with 500 square meters and a production capacity of over 300 tons of fresh tomatoes a year is the largest industrial site in Europe, Princes has invested 60 million euros and since 2018 has been processing only tomatoes from Puglia, sourcing exclusively from producers who respect the highest standards in terms of ethical work, according to the "Global Gap Grasp" or "Sa 8000" certifications.
Princes Food Industries, established in Italy in 2012, employs over 500 workers throughout the year, which exceed 1.600 during the summer processing campaign. In Princes, headquarters in Liverpool, a total of 7 people work in 14 production sites.
