Europe: What will happen to fruits and vegetables after Covid?

The Covid emergency has pushed the fruit and vegetable supply chain to put mutual mistrust aside and finally work together. In fact, from confidential sources we learned that in recent days an Operational Table was held in the presence of Minister Patuanelli

01/04/2021

According to some of the businessmen convened in great secrecy for this meeting, the new minister presented an ambitious and concrete agenda: an endowment of more than 1.000 million euros per year for 3 years in favor of Italian companies. An unexpected rain of money for what promises to be the biggest revolution in the sector.

Fruit revolution

A revolution that, finally, will have an institutional guide: in Rome they have realized that fruits and vegetables exist and the new Minister of Agrarian Policies, although he has not announced it with great fanfare, has clear ideas. In the first informal meeting organized in Zoom, he left everyone speechless with a series of proposals, each accompanied by the resources that the Mipaaf can allocate, resources that we are not yet capable of contributing individually but that together should exceed 1.250 million euros per year for the next three years.

The minister's guidelines are: to relaunch exports in order to reduce the gap (even competitive) with Spain; trade barriers to fruit and vegetables from outside the EU when the same rules are not adopted; new role of the professional with an important budget dedicated to the promotion of fruits and vegetables; incentives for innovation (including varietal innovation); support to Crea for fruit and vegetable research; Reduce the tax wedge for companies in the sector. Then Patuanelli announced that in the next few days he will choose an expert consultant in fruit and vegetables to assist him in the development of this operational relaunch plan.

Recovery Fund

But the news does not stop in Italy. The meeting also announced strong support from the European Union to our fruits and vegetables . In addition to the programs already announced, se says that the Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen is working in a Recovery Fund Fruits and vegetables . From what is filtered from Brussels, and that the MEP confirmed to us in part Paolo de castro , the EU seems willing to officially define Italy as the "orchard of Europe" and to support the modernization of plants and an expansion of surfaces would have some billions of euros endowment.

A step forward from the world de the production : Confidential sources assure that there is a negotiation at a "very advanced" stage to an unprecedented aggregation of the Made in Italy fruit and vegetable supply chain . The project, which will involve the main national productions, will be led by the regions of Piedmont, Emilia Romagna, Sicilia and Campania, whose main companies will create a consortium to encourage exports. The provisional name of the facility is Piedmont-Emilia Romagna-Sicilia-Campania-Export (FISH).

Large-scale distribution

It took the coronavirus to bring producers back to reason, to tear down fences and convince companies to step out of the shadow of the bell tower. But now is not the time to reflect on the mistakes of the past, we have to look to the future: even there. Large-scale distribution - or rather the main brands in the country - want to make a fruit and vegetable pact. What is it about? It is an ambitious program to avoid meaningless promotions, to better manage the fruit and vegetable offer and above all to recognize the fair remuneration to producers: with a more aggregated production panorama, in fact, it will be easier to plan. And the distribution itself will commit itself, also putting resources into an innovative communication campaign aimed at the consumer, with the aim that fruits and vegetables go beyond the already known sanitary aspects.