Maybe not everyone knows that at the heart of some of the most famous chocolates in the world is the round hazelnut from Viterbo, chosen for its perfect shape. Or that Roman ricotta is among the products of Lazio that are increasingly in demand abroad. The cuisine of the Lazio Region was on stage at Expo 2020 Dubai, in a roundup that did not leave out any of the 29 food products and 36 wines bearing the EU’s Geographical Indication.
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Of the 7 billion dollars spent until August 2021 by the United Arab Emirates to import food, only a little more than 200 million refer to the exports of Italian products, well behind Germany, the UK, and France. This is the scenario introduced by Amedeo Scarpa, Director of the Italian Trade Agency, Beatrice Calabrese, Senior Analyst of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Emirates, and Carlo Hausmann, General Manager of Agro Camera, during a debate about Lazio cuisine. The event was attended, among others, by the Consul General in Dubai Giuseppe Finocchiaro and several Emirates’ entrepreneurs, including Bhushant Gandhi, CEO of Truebell (the most important food & beverage import company in the area), and Amani Khouchoue, manager of Let’s Organic food.
ITALIAN F&B FOR THE UAE
The Italian food system, starting with Lazio’s cluster of 50 thousand companies and 70 thousand employees, has all the credentials to play a leading role in the area, the panelists said. The health benefits of the Mediterranean Diet, and the extreme variety and high quality of the Italian food offer are solid premises, even strengthened by the anti-cyclical trend of the food sector, in contrast to the slowdown of other sectors following the pandemic.
The Emirates count up to 200 different nationalities and present entrepreneurial opportunities even in sectors still considered niche, such as organic food, imported from Italy up to 80% and in strong growth after Covid. As well as excellent catering, with over 600 five-star hotels distributed throughout the territory.
