Considering that in addition to sumptuous lunches and dinners, food&beverage is often also part of the choices for gifts, this year too the first item of expenditure for Christmas for Italians is that of food: according to an estimate by Coldiretti/Ixe, the overall to prepare the tables of 24, 25 and also 31 December will be around 5 billion euros, with an increase of as much as 11% compared to 2018.
Most of this expenditure is dedicated to Christmas lunch, which 85% of Italians will consume at home. If in the Christmas Eve menu - underlines Coldiretti - fish is very popular as per tradition, at Christmas meat prevails and the winners are boiled, roasted and fried foods, from lamb to turkey, but also soups, filled pasta, cappelletti in broth and rustic pizzas.
And then there are the gifts: almost one in three Italians (30%) has chosen this year to give wines, sparkling wines or typical food products as gifts for the holidays to put under the tree and set the festive tables where more and more often we talk about food and recipes. In fact, as never before, there has been a push towards useful gifts that favors food and wine, for the affirmation of a lifestyle attentive to the rediscovery of tradition at the table, which is expressed with the do-it-yourself preparation of personal recipes for special evenings or with gifts for friends that recall the flavors and aromas of the local tradition.
The gift of food and wine products is moreover the least recycled and it is also worth mentioning the preference given to the purchase of Made in Italy products, not only for an alleged quality but also, according to Coldiretti, "sovereignly", to help the national economy or guarantee more job opportunities to support the recovery. The attention to detail and the quality of the products can also be seen in the effort in the kitchen, with an estimated average of no less than 3,8 hours to cook the dishes to be served, with 18% of the interviewees stating that they devote even more than five hours.
Still very popular the homage of food and wine baskets: in fact, alongside the inevitable panettone - reports Coldiretti - the meticulous research of cheeses, cured meats, farmer's preserves, ancient Italian grain pastas, meat of national breeds of bulls, from Chianina to Piedmontese, and native wines behind the which hides a story to tell on the tables of the party where more and more often we talk about the origin of the raw material, the seasoning, aging or recovery of varieties at risk of extinction to be exploited in the kitchen.
Lastly, seven out of ten Italians (70%) also attend the traditional Christmas markets this year, which multiply in Italian squares during the holidays, and of these, as many as half (50%) buy food and wine products there to reconcile relaxation with the possibility of making purchases of curiosities and novelties with guaranteed originality.
“Italian agriculture – says the president of Coldiretti Ettore Prandini – it is the greenest in Europe with 299 Dop/Igp/Stg specialties recognized at community level and 415 Doc/Docg wines, 5125 traditional products, the leadership in the organic sector with 72 organic operators, the primacy of world food safety with the highest number of regular products due to the presence of chemical residues”.
