Browsing Category

Food trends

Food trends

SOCIAL KITCHEN, A SHARED PLEASURE

27/12/2018

 

According to Francesco Morace, social scientist at Future Concept Lab, the kitchen is where the unexpected encounter between digital exposure and conviviality, customization and participation occurs. In fact, the burners are where an extension of the concept of recognition – that the new generations consider the fulcrum of their personal and social identity – comes into existence.

According to the sociologist, in the future the idea of domestic space will transform: kitchens will dominate and extend to the living room, finding new expression on specific “island” tables made for in-house cooking demos. The kitchen-living room will thus become the true center of the home.

This type of kitchen will be one of the new frontiers in the concept of family and home experimentation, which must be closely followed in the coming years. A multi-tech, user-friendly experience lived in the place where meals are prepared and enjoyed, just as if on a stage or a film set.

Morace states that all this will add to a renewed and enjoyable interaction with the domestic dimension – also in terms of retail – which may become the ideal location to freely express kinship and use cooking with an expansive philosophy, free of space or time boundaries. This special sensitivity will create a unique bond, distinguished by curiosity and communication: feelings of closeness and precise rituals, which will be shared online without interruption. “We need to believe in the future”, concludes Francesco Morace, “An increased awareness of the high-tech will continue to emerge, also in the high-touch form – the more haptic and human dimension. A binomial made of innovation and tradition that will find its limelight and its language in the food context”.

Food trends

ITALY’S FOOD TRUCK BOOM

27/08/2018

 

Italy is on the way to becoming the Food Truck capital. According to data analysed by Unioncamere on new registered businesses, every two days throughout the nation a new travelling catering firm is set up. On 31st March 2018 there were 2,729 such businesses: on the road you can encounter a prosperous universe linked to the preparation of street food with a particular presence of under-35s and foreign entrepreneurs. Six hundred businesses have been set up by young entrepreneurs born after 1983, representing 22% of the total. And 327 businesses are run by foreigners.

But what today are Food Trucks in Italy?

They are forms of transport (mainly Ape vehicles, but also caravans and vintage vans) equipped with full kitchens, refined and furnished with care, customised in shape and colour with one eye focussing on gourmet food and the other on design and communication – especially via social media.

What’s on offer?

Just a few years ago, the list of dishes on offer on the street in Italy was made up of the typical traditional foods of each local area; today Food Trucks have vastly expanded the variety of the dishes on offer. As well as revisitations of tradition street foods, they also propose street versions of traditional restaurant cuisine (from pret-a-porter Milanese risotto to cupcake-shaped lasagne and fried tortellini on a stick) and original and surprising gourmet innovations.

In which Italian region can we find the most Food Trucks?

By region, Lombardy ranks first with 389 businesses, followed by Puglia with 295 and Lazio with 271.

Food trends

PANETTONE CONQUERS THE STATES

02/08/2018

 

In the New York Times, Teja Rao wrote that panettone – Italy’s traditional Christmas cake – has become “An obsession for American pastry chefs”. The food writer interviewed some of the US’s best pastry chefs and bakers, and came to the conclusion that “bakers say they have become obsessed by this high-maintenance dough: no other breadstuff is harder to make, but no other breadstuff gives you such satisfaction when you are finally successful”.
Demonstrating the typically American genuine fascination for things that are made well and taking time, the article focusses on the difficulty and care and attention required in every phase of the making of this cake, from the choice of ingredients to the control of the temperature of the dough. The NYT interviewed the following pastry chefs: Rick Easton, whose baker’s is located in Pennsylvania but who, during the summer of 2017, organised an event dedicated to the panettone in New York; the local New Yorker, Jim Lahey; the Californian Avery Ruzicka and Roy Shvartzapel from San Francisco, who learnt from the star of Italian pastry chefs, Iginio Massari. “Baking is always a mystic and wonderful thing”, Ruzicka says, “but when baking panettone it is even more so”.

What is panettone?

With its characteristic dome shape, panettone is Milan’s typical Christmas cake made from a dough of water, flour, butter and egg to which is added candied fruit, equal measures of orange and citron zest and raisins.
The origins of the panettone are linked to some Milanese-based legends from the late 15th century. The most famous tells of the chefs of the court of Duke Ludovico Sforza who, in order to properly celebrate Christmas, prepared a bread in the shape of a cupola containing grapes. Toni at the ovens, distracted, left the cake to burn leaving a thick burnt crust. The cake was so enjoyed by the Sforza court that they called it the “pan del Toni” (Toni’s bread) in recognition of its uniqueness.

Market

598.3 million euro. This is the exports value of ‘high quality Italian cakes and pastries’ according to a report by Confartigianato. And if the panettone is the true leader of the pack, other cakes, holiday pastries, bread with raisins, croissants, biscuits and pastry goods fair pretty well too. A real sales boom, which led to an increase of 5.8% during the September 2016-August 2017 period compared to the previous year. And of this amount, almost 600 million – 31.6% – is represented by exports to the United States which increased in the same period by 31.4%.

Diet and nutrition

FAKE NEWS IN A DISH

23/05/2018

 

They are known as Fake News: pieces of news, sometimes even published in or referenced from respectable news sources, which quickly go viral after having been shared on social media. They are considered one of the worst pandemics of modern day, due to the power they have to create new visions and change the public opinion and behaviour. Fake News mainly concerns the political and economics fields, but it also exists in the world of food.

Marcello Ticca, a doctor, adjunct professor, and Nutritional Science specialist, has recorded the most incredible Fake News pertaining to the food and beverage world in his book Miraggi alimentari – 99 idee sbagliate su cosa e come mangiamo (food mirages – 99 wrong ideas about what and how we eat, Laterza ed.). The text certainly debunks a few legends concerning what we eat, including the ones outlined as follows:

1- Never eat pasta in the evening.
As long as the sauce is not too heavy-duty, the body digests pasta far better than meat at night.

2- Fish is good for your memory.
Fish is no higher in phosphorous than other foods: it contains between 130 and 260 mg per 100 g, while meat contains 150/230 per 100 g, and legumes and dried fruit contain much more. Most of all, there is simply no proven correlation between the ingestion of the mineral and an increase in mnemonic ability!

3- Butter is fattier than oil.
Quite the opposite. Butter contains 17% water and thus 100 g of butter have a calorie content of 760. Instead, oil – of any type – contains 900 kcal. Of course, oil has other nutritional advantages over its white cousin…

4- Extracts and cold-pressed juices are like fruit.
Nothing but an illusion. In fact, juice extractors or cold press juicers make fruit lose most of its fibres, which are both useful in facilitating digestion in the intestine and in giving you a sense of fullness, which helps to eat less.

5- Eggs are hard to digest.
Eggs are unjustly among most demonized foods. They are digested much quicker than numerous other foods, and are not harmful for the liver. If they are eaten in the recommended weekly amount (4 times at most) they also help those with liver disorders.

6- Do not drink water over meals.
Many believe water dilutes gastric acids in the stomach lining, thus slowing down digestion. Au contraire, it favours digestion by improving the compactness of ingested foods. It also increases the feeling of fullness (thus making us eat less).

7- Do not eat between meals.
By now it is a proven fact that increasing the frequency of meals – eating food in the same quantity and with the same quality – positively affects a series of variables that contribute to staying healthy and avoiding the accumulation of adipose tissue.

8- Frozen foods are less nutritious.
Freezing is the best preservation method possible, of course when it is initiated swiftly and when the cold chain is never interrupted. In fact, defrosted foods remain untarnished, and certain vitamins and minerals even have a higher bioavailability than usual!

Diet and nutrition

THE BENEFICIAL PROPERTIES OF TOMATO

30/04/2018

 

The tomato is one of the symbols of the Mediterranean diet, even though it comes from a very long way away. Considered to be the most Italian of all vegetables, it actually arrived here from the Americas in the middle of the 16th century. Thanks to its countless qualities, it is now considered to be the emblem of a healthy diet. “The high water-content helps keep the body hydrated and reduces the overall calorie intake” explains nutritionist Elena Dogliotti, who adds, “It also contains very little sugar and a good dose of vitamin C, which has a strong antioxidant effect, and lots of potassium, which helps keep the blood pressure within the limits and is important for muscle function and cellular exchange. Thanks to fibre, it is an excellent pre-biotic, properly nourishing the “good” bacteria present in the gut and promoting a correct intestinal balance”. This balance, as we know, is essential to keep us healthy and to avoid the development of allergies, autoimmune diseases and obesity. The tomato also has lots of bioactive molecules, like antioxidant polyphenols, which have valuable anti-ageing properties, and is well-known for the presence of lycopene, a carotenoid which gives it its red colour as well as promoting the function of the immune system and helping to prevent cancer. “Vitamin C is absorbed better when tomatoes are eaten raw, while lycopene absorption is better when they are cooked: higher temperatures break the cell walls, increasing its availability” says Elena Dogliotti. “The best thing is to serve cooked tomato with a drizzle of raw olive oil, to maintain all the properties of the condiment intact too”. Tomato sauce, a typical Italian condiment for pasta and pizza, is a healthy food which is also ideal for children and teenagers.

The origins
The tomato originated in Mexico and Peru, where it was greatly appreciated and was known by the Incas and Aztecs as xitomatl (hence the English name, tomato), meaning “plant with juicy flesh and lots of seeds”. It was eaten every day, also as a sauce. The tomato arrived in Europe in 1540, when the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés took some back home to Spain. The fruit of the first plants arrived in Europe and wascultivated mainly in France, in a cold climate, remaining small and yellowish, often twisted and not particularly appealing.
The tomato made its appearance in Italy in 1596 as an ornamental plant in Northern Italian homes. Twenty years later it moved south, where the favourable climate produced bigger orangey-red fruit. Southern Italian farmers began eating it raw and cooked almost a century before other Europeans and today the tomato is one of the most widely used foods in Italian cuisine.

Diet and nutrition

INTEGRATION? YOU’LL FIND IT IN THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET AT MEALTIME

01/03/2018

 

Bologna’s F.I.CO. (Fabbrica Italiana Contadina) Eataly World, the biggest food park in the world, opened its doors in 2018, the year of Italian food, with an intense programme of talks, discussions, lessons and seminars entitled ‘Fico Mediterranean Lectures’.
Marino Niola, an anthropologist, journalist and populariser, inaugurated the series of international keynote lectures with a conference on ‘Being and Well-being: the Mediterranean Recipe’.
According to Niola, who is the scientific director of MedEatResearch, a social research centre studying the Mediterranean diet at Naples’s Suor Orsona Benincasa university, ‘the Mediterranean diet lengthens our lives, brings us well-being and increases our feelings of contentment, because it isn’t merely a nutritional model based on seasonal produce, traditional cuisine and biodiversity; it is a way of living well that re-establishes the balance between the environment and development.’
It was in order to define this ideal – an ideal way of life as well as an ideal form of nourishment – that the American scientists Ancel Keys and Margaret Haney invented the term ‘Mediterranean diet’ in 1975. Italy has the honour of being the place where it was discovered: the two researchers were in the Cilento region when they wrote their bestseller How to Eat Well and Stay Well the Mediterranean Way (Doubleday, New York).
‘In 2010, UNESCO put the Mediterranean diet on its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, propelling it into the world’s nutritional mainstream’, said Niola. ‘In any case, the Mediterranean diet has always been international because it is made up of mixtures, loans, crosses and contamination. Even the most traditional dish, the most identity-forming standard has traces of others. It’s no coincidence that many of the basic ingredients of our cuisines come from distant countries: they are foreigners we put in our plates… and thank goodness they’re there. Our spaghetti with tomato sauce would never have existed without entirely American tomate. If aubergines hadn’t arrived here from the East, we’d be without our beloved aubergine parmigiana. Not to mention potatoes, peppers and chocolate. In this way, every recipe is none other than the mixture of different ingredients that become one single thing.’
Niola’s conclusion was greeted with resounding applause: ‘In such a scenario, the Mediterranean diet is a recipe for co-existence, made not only out of foods but also, and above all, out of ethical and social values, models for convivial life, for an awareness of sustainability, an openness to exchange, a welcoming of integration. In short, an example of how humanity in the future could be.’

Food trends

TRENDS: FOOD & BEVERAGE IN 2018

15/02/2018

 

What wonders does the food & beverage industry have in store for us in 2018? For the past few years, the Waitrose and Whole Foods supermarket chains have been laying down the law, anticipating the food trends that will sweep the world. According to the list they’ve produced for 2018, we will be seeing very simple, yet high-tech, specialities boasting health benefits. Consumers will continue to be obsessed by one question: where does this food come from? Traceability, ingredients and wholesomeness will be the aspects to look out for when buying food, to the point where some consumers will be driven to farm food for themselves (using DIY agricultural machines like FarmBot). Purchases will be increasingly high tech: how many of us will soon be using technofoodology and artificial intelligence when shopping, such as Amazon’s Alexa device that you can talk to and do a number of things with, including ordering food? Let’s take a closer look.

Food
The most important trends identified by Whole Foods and Waitrose are particularly nutritious edible powders, such as matcha tea, maca root, spirulina and even cacao. People like them because they are easy to add to dishes, making soups, broths and hot and cold drinks more nutritious.
Protein powders, the real Food 3.0 frontier, merit particular attention. Companies are specialising in refined flavours for balanced liquid meals that can be consumed on the go or for homemade meals with extra protein flours: muesli or porridge containing flakes and flours with low levels of carbohydrate. Plant-based protein is also in the spotlight: soy, seeds, algae and almonds. These will be the stars of ground-breaking products such as Heme, a protein created by the Impossible Foods start-up, which apparently mimics meat flavour perfectly and could become the most popular ingredient on vegetarian menus in 2018.
Then there are medicinal mushrooms, featuring varieties such as reishi, chaga and cordyceps, which up to now have been popular among athletes. From having been used as dietary supplements, they are now added to traditional dishes like broths, desserts and even coffee. Cordyceps has been introduced from Finland. It is made from matsutake mushrooms and apparently has all the health benefits of normal coffee without the side-effects that some of us suffer from, such as heartburn and tachycardia. Clarified butter, or ghee, is also one of 2018’s musts: lactose free, it can resist high temperatures. When it comes to the culinary trends we’ll be stealing from other cultures, Middle Eastern cuisine will be top of the list, particularly that of Morocco, thanks to its spices and their worldwide popularity: harissa, cardamom, cumin and coriander. This culinary/cultural exchange will also involve Latin American cuisine, which has seen a surge thanks to the fashion for new types of tacos and foods designed for different dining occasions. Last but not least, there is a new healthy way of cooking: air frying. What does air-fried food taste like? Almost the same as fat-fried food, but much healthier.

Beverages
According to Whole Foods and Waitrose, we’ll be increasingly drinking ‘mocktails’: non-alcoholic cocktails. And what ingredient will be absolutely essential from now on? Timut pepper. This unusual pepper from Nepal is rapidly becoming popular among foodies all over the world and is perfect as an ingredient in cocktails. We will also become big fans of a new kind of soft drink that has nothing to do with the sugar-loaded beverages that have dominated the drinks aisles of our supermarkets up until now. These are natural drinks made from plants such as maple and birch that are naturally carbonated without the addition of carbon dioxide.

Diet and nutrition

THE REDISCOVERY OF BUTTER

29/12/2017

 

After having been demonised by health fanatics the world over for years, butter is having its rightful revenge.

As far back as 2014, it ended up on the cover of Time magazine with the title ‘Eat butter. Scientists labeled fat the enemy. Why they were wrong’. Thus, the humble pat of butter has slowly made its way back into the kitchen. Even researchers studying social change have looked into the case. ‘We are faced with nothing short of a comeback as far as butter concerned,’ writes sociologist Enrico Finzi, ‘thanks to its sensory characteristics, which are often associated with the pleasure of eating and the extraordinary contribution that butter makes when preparing certain foods and recipes.’

In actual fact, much more lies behind the rediscovery of butter. A recent study by Coldiretti, the Italian farmers’ association, explains how ‘demand has increased thanks to the recognition of its health benefits: experts say that a portion of butter (10 grams) contains 24 milligrams of cholesterol, i.e. 8% of the recommended daily amount. But demand has also increased because, especially in professional kitchens, butter is used as an alternative to fats like palm oil, which is being abandoned by a growing number of industries.’ It is no coincidence that the price of butter has doubled over the past year in Italy. ‘In the last decade, the percentage of consumers who prefer this product has significantly increased, and it now accounts for 47% of the Italian population,’ writes Renzo Pellatti in his book Conoscere e Gustare il Burro (‘Getting to know and appreciate butter’), published by Daniela Piazza Editore.

While in the United States, people like Elaine Khosrova, the author of Butter: A Rich History, have invented the profession of butter taster, today in Italy the number of types of butter – produced by skimming the cream off whey or churning milk fat – is growing. Goat butter is the latest novelty: with its stronger flavour and pure white colour, it is easily digested by those who don’t drink cow’s milk. In contrast, clarified butter (ghee) has no water content and is casein and lactose free. In short, it only contains butter fat. What’s so special about ghee? It has a higher smoke point, so it is the perfect fat to use when frying, particularly meat, without burning anything. Then there’s low-fat butter, which contains a low percentage of fat (around 60% compared to the 82% of normal butter) and is perfect for eating ‘as is’ or spreading on bread.

Food trends

CHRISTMAS GIFTS: BUSINESSES PREFER FOOD & BEVERAGE

05/12/2017

 

The market of high quality corporate presents is on the up. And for Christmas 2017 we are witnessing a return to tradition, especially in Italy, where large businesses are already moving with time to spare, choosing from the many food & beverage specialities the territory has to offer. Not only panettone and bubbles, but gourmet treats carefully selected for customers and collaborators alike.
After years in which we have seen a preference for electrical consumer goods and wellbeing experience packages, this year companies have returned to gifting high quality food & beverage products, often linked to good causes. In fact, there is a penchant for specialities coming from Italy’s earthquake-stricken regions, Abruzzo and Umbria, or from prisons, such as in Padua where 150 inmates are employed in a baker’s which has quickly made an excellent name for itself in the production of Christmas sweetmeats. Thus the customary corporate gift is given extra meaning: the receiver is pleased to receive high quality products while making a small gesture of solidarity.

So the market is growing, but only for the more evolved companies. Such as Hampers, a branch of Alifood that started working in the corporate gifts field in 2003. Working in this sector requires a background in marketing, logistics and customisation, as well as a perfect knowledge of the world of food & beverage. In fact, even the simplest gift is chosen together with the client, customised with the company logo or the receiver’s initials; then there is the packaging to prepare, delivery to organise. In 14 years of work, Hampers has established a perfectly synchronised supply chain enabling them to satisfy even the most complicated demands, throughout Italy and abroad.

Food trends

ORGANIC ITALIAN WINE: A SUCCESS STORY

19/09/2017

 

Organic Italian wine is going from strength to strength. In 2016, sales reached a total value of €275 million, up 34% compared to 2015. The domestic market was worth 30% of the total (€83 million, up 22% compared to 2015). However, most sales are made on international markets: €192 million, up a staggering 40% compared to 2015 (as opposed to the more subdued 4% increase in total wine exports). These are the statistics published in Nomisma’s Wine Monitor research, commissioned by the Italian Trade Agency’s ICE national institute for foreign commerce.

As far as exports are concerned, organic Italian wine accounts for 3.4% of total Italian wine exports, but this figure is part of a steady upward trend (up 1.9% in 2014 and up 2.6% in 2015), thanks also to the importance that organic companies attribute to exports. The survey demonstrated that organic wine exports are worth 70% of total turnover among the Italian companies interviewed (compared to the 52% importance of exports in the Italian wine industry as a whole). In 2016, 79% of the companies producing organic wines exported the quality and excellence of Italian wine beyond national borders. The main market for this trade is the European Union, which is the number one destination (worth 66% in terms of sales). Just as in the agri-food industry, Germany is the main market for organic Italian wine (accounting for 33% of the foreign turnover achieved in 2016), followed by the United States (12%). According to Nomisma’s Wine Monitor, the US market will drive Italian sales abroad in the next three years; there are also excellent prospects in the European market, which will continue to be a focus.

When the behaviour of foreign consumers was analysed, organic wine’s success beyond national borders was confirmed, as shown by the results of the survey, which analysed the behaviour and purchasing habits of two important markets: Germany and the UK. These markets are extremely promising for Italy, first and foremost because they are among the largest importers of Italian wine (22% of the wine imported into the UK is of Italian origin, while in Germany it accounts for 36%).
The interest in organic wine is demonstrated by consumer preferences. In Germany, 12% of consumers have tried organic wine at least once in the past 12 months, while in the UK the figure is 9%. As in Italy, both markets prefer still red and white wines, followed by sparkling red in the UK and sparkling white in Germany. According to consumers (42% in the UK and 40% in Germany), organic wine produced in Italy is generally of a higher quality than organic wine produced in other countries. Quality is a recurrent theme among the attributes that this wine evokes. Both in Germany and the UK, 19% of consumers indicate ‘high quality’ when they think of Italian organic wine, while 15% see ‘authenticity’ as its main value. Italian organic wine undoubtedly enjoys an excellent reputation beyond national borders, but there is still untapped potential: 84% of wine consumers – both in the UK and in Germany – are interested in buying organic wine that has been produced in Italy.

 

What is organic wine?

Organic grapes are grown in vineyards without the aid of synthetic chemical substances (fertilisers, weed killers, fungicides, insecticides and pesticides).
Wine-making takes place in cellars using only oenological processes and products authorised by EU regulation No. 203/2012.
In short, organic wines are the result of an agricultural and production philosophy that prioritises our relationship with the land and nature and, in general, the wholesomeness of the food we eat.

Gourmet food

ITALIAN GELATO VS ICE CREAM: THE FOUR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEM

20/07/2017

 

Apart from the fact that gelato comes from Italy, people usually consider gelato and ice cream synonymous terms, but that is absolutely not the case. There are four main differences – let’s have a look at them.

1 – Italian gelato has much less fat. American ice creams have to contain at least 10% fat by law, while gelato usually contains an average of 3.8%. That’s because, unlike ice cream, gelato is made with fresh milk and not powdered milk or cream.

2 – Italian gelato is blended slowly, so it contains less air than industrially produced ice cream (10% air in gelato, 50% in ice cream). A balanced quantity of air is an essential step when making good gelato: it affects the consistency, smooth texture and appearance.

3 – Italian gelato is kept at a temperature of around -12°C, while industrially produced ice cream is usually kept at an average of -20°C. This makes an unmistakable difference to the product’s taste.

4 – Italian handmade ice cream is usually made in small batches that are consumed shortly afterwards. That’s why it doesn’t need the preservatives or additives that industrially produced ice cream needs to be stored for long periods of time.

A year-round market
If we analyse global consumer trends in frozen desserts (ice cream, Italian gelato and sorbet), one fact stands out: they are all products that are not influenced by the season or climate. If we look at per capita consumption per country, Business Insider’s league table surprisingly awards New Zealand the top spot, with an average of 28.4 litres per person per year, followed by the USA with 20.8, Australia with 18, Finland with 14.2, Sweden with 12, Canada with 10.6, Denmark with 9.9, Ireland with 9.4, Italy with 8 and the UK with 7. What’s even more surprising is the figure that reveals that, of all the states in the USA, Alaska – where the average temperature never rises above 19°C – consumes the most ice cream. In contrast, Texas, where the climate is decidedly warmer, only comes tenth.

The Italian gelato boom in the USA
Italian handmade gelato is increasingly popular in the USA. Thanks to the range of flavours, its nutritional balance and its ‘exotic charm’, it’s the perfect combination and a luxury that many Americans are increasingly indulging in, even if just to take in the typical atmosphere of an Italian ice cream parlour. If we look at the figures, consumption of Italian gelato in the USA has been constantly increasing since 2009, with annual sales estimated to be worth approximately $210 million. However, we should stress that although gelato accounts for a smaller share of the frozen dessert market, it is also the sector with the fastest growth (up 32% in 2016).

Diet and nutrition

BIODIVERSITY, AN ITALIAN TREASURE

10/07/2017

 

Why does the best basil in the world grow in Prà, in the western part of Genoa? Soil and sunshine certainly have something to do with it, but it’s also a question of wind: the northern Mediterranean breeze that meets that of the Maritime Alps there. The best basil in the world is the result of a series of extraordinary circumstances that combine in an area measuring 18.5 square kilometres, nestled between the districts of Pegli and Voltri. If you take a step back and look at the whole of Italy, you’ll see that Prà is just one of myriad cases like it. That’s because Italy benefits from unique geographic conditions: it’s a peninsula surrounded by a calm sea whose winds meet the mountains that run along the length of the country. That’s why it’s fair to say that biodiversity – i.e. the variety of animal and vegetable species that live within a particular ecosystem – is one of Italy’s true treasures. As many as 58,000 animal species and 7,000 varieties of edible fruits and vegetables have been registered, including 1,200 native grape varieties and 538 olive cultivars: incredible figures if we consider that the country only covers 0.20% of the Earth’s surface.

The threats that menace Italian biodiversity

During the International Day for Biological Diversity on 22nd May 2017, the United Nations raised concerns regarding the danger of extinction faced by many species of flora and fauna. Italy, the champion of biodiversity, also has to tackle a number of problems, starting with the reduction in the range of crops grown at an international level. However, it is also true to say that, in recent years, Italian agriculture has become the most environmentally friendly in Europe, with the highest number of PDO/PGI certifications awarded to food products, and it boasts the highest number of organic farms.

Agriculture: the future belongs to the young

According to a memorandum drafted by Coldiretti, the Italian farmers’ federation, Italy is the only country in the world that can boast 4,965 registered traditional food products, 291 PDO/PGI specialities recognised at EU level, 415 DOC/DOCG wines and 60,000 organic farms. It is no coincidence that agriculture was the industry that saw the highest increase in employment in 2016 (up 4.9% year on year). According to Coldiretti, employment grew thanks to a phenomenon whereby many young people are returning to the land. Almost one in ten companies run by under-35s works in agriculture (8.4%), which amounts to a total of 51,123 farms, up 6% in 2016. Their work ranges from food processing to wholesale, from teaching farms to farm kindergartens, as well as recreational activities, social agriculture for fostering the integration of people with disabilities, park, garden and road maintenance, nature wellness, landscape gardening and the production of renewable energy. The result is that, compared to the industry average, farms run by under-35s are bigger (with a 54% larger surface area), provide more work (50% more) and have a higher turnover (75% more).

Diet and nutrition, Food trends

HEALTH TRIUMPHS AT MEALTIMES

21/06/2017

 

According to the Health/Wellness: food as medicine global survey compiled by Nielsen after studying a sample of 30,000 people from 63 countries, consumers from all over the world are increasingly concerned about how and what they eat and increasingly interested in discovering new healthy foods. Food is seen as a treatment/medicine, and diet is no longer just a nutritional regimen: it is, instead, nothing short of a way of life.

Why are consumers increasingly seeking out healthy foods?

Nielsen’s survey identified four reasons behind this phenomenon:

– The ageing of the world population;
– Growing rates of food allergies/intolerance and chronic illnesses;
– An increase in self-treatment and prevention;
– Consumers who are increasingly informed and online.

What sources do consumers consult when deciding whether a food is healthy or not?
(Nielsen)

Nutrition labels 34%
Packaging health claims (‘high fibre’, ‘low fat’) 28%
Medical/health-based websites 21%
Relatives/friends 21%
Medical professionals (doctors, dieticians) 20%
Magazines, newspapers or books 20%
TV programmes, films or documentaries 14%
Signs/labels on shop shelves/products 14%
Consumer blogs 10%


Healthy food in Italy

Italy was ranked the healthiest country in the world in the 2017 Bloomberg Health Index, which analyses the health of 163 countries. Italians are paying more attention to food than ever before, they are increasingly health-conscious and careful about what they eat. According to a report by Coldiretti (the federation of Italian farmers), the consumption of wholemeal foods is growing (up 11%), as is the consumption of gluten-free foods (up 26%), organic foods (up 20%) and vegetable drinks (up 7%). What’s more, Coldiretti has identified a trend linked to so-called ‘superfoods’: foods that combine taste with health benefits. The most popular superfoods include goji berries, adzuki beans, ginger (which has seen an increase in trade of 141% in a single year) and turmeric (with a 93% growth in trade). As well as exotic options (turmeric, adzuki beans and ginger are mostly produced in India and China), Italy also boasts a wealth of products that naturally aid well-being and the environment. Coldiretti has dubbed these products ‘Grandma’s superfoods’.
These extraordinary foods include Polignano purple carrots, considered nothing less than an elixir of long life, thanks also to the high quantities of polyphenols, flavonoids and anthocyanins they contain. Then there’s The barattiere, an old variety of cucumber from the Puglia region; it’s the perfect food for people on a diet, as it provides high levels of potassium whilst containing low levels of sugar and sodium. In the Calabria region, they grow Diamante chili peppers, known as an aphrodisiac. The red onions of Cavasso Nuovo, in the Veneto region, have strong anti-stress benefits and are helpful in the fight against high blood pressure and cholesterol. Last but not least, there’s Piedmont’s white carrot, which is good for the liver because it regulates bile production.

 

 

Food trends, Gourmet food

THE GOURMET STREET FOOD PHENOMENON

08/06/2017

It’s winning over everyone: Michelin-starred chefs, food and wine critics, food bloggers, entrepreneurs and, of course, consumers. We’re talking about gourmet street food: the modern-day reinterpretation of street food that uses top-quality ingredients. It’s still a niche market but it is rapidly growing, particularly in big cities where the number of food trucks offering sophisticated delicacies from all over the world is increasing.

Today, meal times have changed due to busy lifestyles and the lack of spare time. So-called “metro eaters” eat on their way from one appointment to another and they have two priorities: quality and speed. According to food anthropologist Lucia Galasso – who contributed to research commissioned by Sanpellegrino, a leader in the beverage industry –gourmet street food is a vehicle we use to communicate our food values to others. It’s no coincidence that every food preference is catered for in large cities. What we are dealing with is a reaction to standardised food that could end up making us lose the sense of those unmistakable details that reveal the identity of a particular cuisine. As far as this aspect is concerned, street food is a tool that allows us to explore a territory and rediscover recipes that have been handed down from one generation to the next at an affordable price. And let’s not forget storytelling. Often street cooks are the repositories of an oral tradition of traditional cuisine: a pleasure that involves all the senses and wins us over through the stories they tell and their gestures.

A number of international cases demonstrate the rise of gourmet street food. The chefs at New York’s Rouge Tomate, a well-known restaurant on the Upper East Side boasting a Michelin star, have created the “Rouge Tomate Cart in the Park”, which offers a street menu at the entrance to Central Park Zoo. Italy, with its rich food tradition, is just as far ahead: Michelin-starred chefs Cristina Bowerman and Mauro Uliassi offer their specialities in the open air from an Ape Romeo three-wheel van and the “Uliassi street good gang”. The Michelin guide has also joined the fray, and in 2016 it ennobled this phenomenon by awarding a star to two landmarks of Singapore’s street food: the Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle food stall and the Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice and Noodles food stall.

About Us