News
Italy: two distinct industries
In a recent report on the situation of the tomato processing industry in Italy, the ISMEA (Istituto di Servizi per il Mercato Agricolo Alimentare) underlined the role played by the country on the worldwide scene, but pointed out the obvious dissemblance between the two industrial sectors – in the north and in the south-central region – which are highly contrasted.
The apparent equal distribution of processed volumes in two halves between both regions actually hides some major differences between the two districts, which are highly specialized in their activities and in their production categories. Companies set up in the north (most of them in Emilia Romagna) mainly produce paste (39.3%), pulps (35%), passata (23.7%) and ready-to-use sauces (less than 2%). As for the south-central region, it mostly produces peeled tomatoes (44%), pulps, passata and cherry-tomatoes (48%) and a limited amount of paste (8%). (Source : OI Pomodoro Nord Italia, ANICAV, 2016 data.)
Another marked difference is the level of industrial concentration, which is considerably higher in the north than in the south. The north of the country hosts 21 companies and 16 producers' organization's (POs), accounting for 95% of the volume produced and processed in the region. On the other hand, the south-central region hosts 70 processing companies that account for 95% of the quantities processed and 30 POs that account for 89% of the quantities harvested. The contrast between the two regions also includes the average size of the farms, which cover approximately 5.5 hectares in the Mezzogiorno region against 19 hectares on average in the north.
Finally, price levels for raw materials, which are based on category destination differences, to which south-central growers are attached, underline the contrast between the two growing regions and the two industries, with an average value in 2016 of EUR 81 /tonne for round tomatoes (mainly intended for the production of passata and pastes), of EUR 103.4 /tonne for oblong varieties (intended for the production of peeled tomatoes and pulp) and EUR 137.2 /tonne for cherry-tomatoes that are grown for processing.
In 2017, prices have recorded a drop in the north of Italy, where a more long-term downward trend has been observed, while negotiations in the south-central region have led to the continuation of price conditions from what they were in 2016.
