Italy is the main producer of rice in Europe, with a +4% increase in exports in 2019 for a value of almost 550 million euros. This is what Italian farmers association Coldiretti says when commenting positively on the signing of two agreements that open the Chinese market to the exports of Italian beef and rice.
The Italian Ambassador in Beijing, Luca Ferrari, has signed the agreement with the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China that will allow the export of Italian rice to China, in particular the most suitable qualities for typical ‘risotto’.
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“The signing of the agreement in this moment takes on great value – the ambassador said – both because it comes despite the dramatic period we are experiencing and because it opens up a commercial opportunity for Italy to export its typical varieties to the most populous country in the world. This is the metaphor of two countries that in this difficult moment choose the path of cooperation, looking ahead.”
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Now it will be necessary to overcome the technical obstacles to Italian food exports to balance trade relations with imports from China, equal to 667 million in 2019 (Italian exports to the Asian giant amount to 477 million).
| Export sales in volume | 671,000 tonnes (+5%) |
| Export sales in value | 510 million euro (+2.6%) |
| Top-performing countries | France, Germany and the UK |
| Italian rice: export share by areas | EU 88% | Non-EU 12% |
Italian rice is grown on an area of 220,000 hectares. About 4,000 Italian farms harvest 1.40 million tons of product per year, equal to about 50% of the entire EU production. With a unique variety range and among the best in the world.
With over 200 varieties of rice, each with its own peculiarities, Italy ensures over 50% of European production. Italian rice differs from that grown in the rest of the world thanks to typical and highly appreciated varieties such as Carnaroli, Arborio, Vialone Nano, S. Andrea and Baldo. These excellent productions are enhanced thanks to the PDO and PGI brands that recognize the specificity of the territories of origin. Thanks to the agreement, the qualities of Italian ‘risotto’ will be increasingly appreciated by Chinese consumers, the world’s largest consumers of this food.
THE PDO – PGI ITALIAN RICE
RISO DI BARAGGIA BIELLESE AND VERCELLESE PDO
Recognized in 2017, this is the only rice PDO certification. It includes seven Italian rice varieties: Carnaroli, Sant’Andrea, Baldo, Arborio, Balilla, Loto and Gladio. Mostly grown in the Piedmont region (Italy’s north west) and in the Biella and Vercelli areas
RISO NANO VIALONE VERONESE PGI
The first rice variety to get a PGI certification (1996). A niche product that is mostly grown in the Veneto region and in the plains near Verona. Ideal for the preparation of risottos thanks to its very porous and sticky grains.
RISO DEL DELTA DEL PO PGI
This rice variety, which got a PGI certification in 2009, owes its uniqueness to the lands where it is grown: the dark and peaty soil of the lower Ferrara area and the often flooded plains near the city of Rovigo (Veneto region). The most common varieties here are Carnaroli, Volano, Baldo and Arborio.