The raw materials used for the production of special pasta – such as kamut pasta – varieties are not only scrutinised for their country of origin, yield, and quality but also for quantity issues. The drops in production of ‘minor’ grains may have direct repercussions on the immediate pasta volumes and consequently on the sales in the retail trend. The case of kamut pasta is more than significant, in that sense. In 2016, kamut pasta – confirms the Commercial Director for Europe at De Cecco, Luciano Berardi – has unfortunately suffered the consequences of the worldwide shortage in the supply of the kamut khorasan grain. Soon, though, the production of the new 2016/2017 campaign will be available, and we are very optimistic that the distributors will quickly return to give this type of pasta the right visibility and space on shelves and in advertisement it has acquired over the last 10 years. The scarcity of kamut has created problems not only for pasta producers, but also for bakeries. Moreover, the fluctuations in the commodity markets make it difficult to establish a serious, cooperative, and stable trade policy. The weight of the products made from this grain is always higher for Kamut International. The company in Montana that registered the brand 25 years ago generates 85% of its business in Europe, of which 75% is done in Italy. Out of more than 2.000 products made from Kamut wheat, over 80% come from Italy. The latter is the largest market with over 300 licensee companies and more than 70 companies that converted to organic Kamut striving to enter the supply chain. However, almost all certified wheat is imported, the yields of European and Italian fields are still too low from a qualitative point of view, but the opportunities to develop organic Khorasan wheat farming are within grasp, starting from supply chain agreements with major Italian brands.
