The US Department of Commerce has revised downwards the anti-dumping tariffs imposed on Italian pasta, following months of protectionist tensions and sustained diplomatic engagement by the Italian government.
The US administration moved ahead of the original 11 March deadline by recalculating the preliminary rates introduced on 4 September. The tariff, initially set at a prohibitive 91.74%, has now been reduced to 2.26% for La Molisana, 13.98% for Garofalo, and 9.09% for eleven other non-sampled producers, including Barilla.
Coldiretti (Italy’s farmers association) and Filiera Italia (a leading Italian food industry association) welcomed the revision, calling it “significant”. According to their estimates, the original duty level would have doubled the cost of a plate of pasta for American households, putting at risk a strategic market worth €671 million in exports in 2024.
The move follows the outcome of a US Department of Commerce investigation concluded last October, which identified dumping margins for the period from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024. That inquiry targeted La Molisana and Garofalo, as well as other exporters, including Agritalia, Barilla, Rummo, Pastificio Liguori, Sgambaro, Cav. Giuseppe Cocco, Tamma, and Della Forma.
The current result comes as Italian cuisine celebrates its recognition by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It is the product of coordinated action: an “ad adiuvandum” defensive brief submitted by the Italian government through its Embassy in Washington, a formal note of support to the European Commission, and bipartisan pressure from Italian-American members of Congress. Companies involved will now be able to submit further observations, pending the final decisions of the investigation.
Political satisfaction has also been voiced. According to sources at Palazzo Chigi, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni held a long and cordial end-of-year phone call with President Donald Trump, during which she thanked him for the positive evolution of the case.