The pandemic is not hindering the production of Aceto Balsamico di Modena PGI. The protection Consortium’s data show an increase in production of +11% in volume in 2021, thus making Italy’s balsamic vinegar cross the threshold of 100 million liters.
“Our sector – says Mariangela Grosoli, President of the Consortium for the Protection of Aceto Balsamico di Modena PGI – has never been able to exceed this threshold. That such a record be set in the midst of the current global economic situation, characterized by unprecedented levels of uncertainty and complexity, further emphasizes its value. At a time when international relations are at a standstill or slowing down, and many players are forced to remain on the sidelines, the balsamic vinegar sector shows its ability to react and look to the future with confidence”.
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Sensing the changes taking place and the new trends and needs, the Consortium has launched innovative projects in step with this dynamic transition. Starting with the digital turnaround in the monitoring, supervision and repression of fraud and counterfeiting of balsamic vinegar worldwide.
NEW FRAUD SURVEILLANCE TOOLS
“When we realized that the traditional ways of protecting and supervising were no longer adequate to the changes underway, accelerated by the pandemic – explains Federico Desimoni, Director of the Consortium – we decided to change the paradigm. We have succeeded in creating and activating new tools that allow us to extend our activity of vigilance and repression of fraud to the whole world, without particular costs and with incredibly fast timescales”.
These surveillance tools allow not only to monitor the digital world globally, but also to intervene by removing those offers that violate the Consortium’s intellectual property rights. Moreover, they guarantee the possibility to verify all the products offered for sale and, among those, the illegitimate cases of counterfeit, evocation or imitation and to program on-site actions of the vigilance agents of the Consortium.
In the last months of the year, almost 8,700 advertisements related to Aceto Balsamico di Modena PGI were analyzed on 43 different platforms. These offers, published by 2,967 sellers, at the time of data processing generated a total of 169,251 estimated sales for a total turnover of 3,331,900.63 euros. A total of 236 offers were found to be illegitimate. Interventions were immediate and, within a few days, achieved a 100% positive outcome. In 234 cases the advertisement was completely removed, in the remaining 2 cases the necessary corrections were made to remove the fraudulent information.