While adhering to fine craftsmanship, the Italian salumi industry is a sector that has fostered innovation. Compared to previous data going back to 1993, recent probes of the Research Centre for Food and Nutrition show a decrease of fats in general and an optimisation of the compositional quality, i.e. fewer saturated and more unsaturated fats. Moreover, salinity in Italian salumi has been considerably reduced, ranging from about 4% up to over 45%, depending on the product. All of this is owing to the salumi industry that has been able to innovate by improving the quality of the salumi we consume. President of Assica, Association of Meat and Salumi Producers, Nicola Levoni, wanted to highlight the progress made by the Italian industry on the R&D front. “Another important innovation of our industry is the development of the protective atmosphere, in other words, the use of only nitrogen or a mixture of nitrogen and carbon dioxide in the packaging of pre-sliced cold cuts instead of oxygen. In this field, ongoing research concerns many sectors, from packaging materials to the development of bioplastics with the lowest environmental impact. Furthermore, large-scale investments have been made in technologies for the research of new treatments to prolong the shelf-life of the salumi whilst ensuring the invariableness of the product and its absolute security”.
ITALIAN SALUMI STAND OUT IN THE EUROPEAN UNION – Italian products constitute the largest group within the salumi sector, accounting for a third of the European heritage of meat-based products. According to Assica “Italy is the country that can offer the widest variety of quality salumi. Especially for the salumi sector, it is crucial to emphasize the culture of quality production. We do not only distinguish ourselves through the exclusive use of Italian raw materials, but also for our ability to select the best raw materials, regardless of origin”. The famous ‘Made in Italy’ labelled food products are therefore the result of the producers’ extraordinary capacity to combine tradition and technological innovation, without forfeiting the high quality of the national pork productions of which the salumi industry makes entire use, which is, however, not quite enough. In fact, so as to meet the national demand, we are forced to import about 40% of pork.
