Food: EU-Mercosur agreement takes exports to 800 million

All our key sectors: from confectionery to wine, from oils and fats to vegetable preserves. Not forgetting cheese and cured meats, which currently have a marginal presence, far below their potential, and which could take off with the agreement.

With the US tariffs, the possibility of diversifying outlets appears to be a breath of fresh air for companies

We are still unable to quantify the effects of President Trump's tariffs. In 2024 our food exports grew by 17.5% and at the moment our companies estimate a drop of between -4-5% at the end of the year. The US remains, after Germany, our number one exporting country, so it is crucial for us to keep the US trade channel alive, open and attractive, but it is also important to diversify by entering other markets. This is why, after the EU-Mercosur agreement, we are looking at other trade areas of strategic interest, towards which we can promote free trade agreements. And in the front row are Japan and the Arab Gulf countries. We must intercept those markets where the food culture is already similar to ours or is approaching us. With the necessary caution to avoid imbalances and abnormal competition, the free market has always helped to increase productivity and create wealth. We live in times when we must be courageous and, if necessary, take some controlled risks.

Much has been said during the negotiations about possible threats on the agricultural import front. However, with the reduction in tariffs also come opportunities. For example, it will cost less to source coffee and cocoa. Strategic raw materials for the Italian food industry.

On the raw materials front, Italy is only self-sufficient in fruit and vegetables, wine and poultry meat products, for everything else we are importers. The latest Ismea Report on Italian agri-foodstuffs 2024 indicates that the main food products imported from Italy are coffee, extra virgin olive oil, maize, live cattle, hams and pig shoulders, soft and hard wheat, soya beans, palm oil and soya oil cake. As for the value of cocoa and coffee imports, an open free market such as Mercosur should mitigate the cost peaks of our supplies, reducing disruption and making raw material costs less prohibitive and more affordable for the Italian processing industry.

Will the EU-Mercosur agreement be able to repeat the successes of the Ceta agreement with Canada?

The Ceta agreement allowed a 99% reduction in pre-existing tariffs between EU member states and Canada. Before the agreement, the average annual growth of our agri-food products in the Canadian market was +5.2%. With the green light to Ceta, in five years our exports have increased at an average of +10.4% per year. Exactly double. The agreement with the Mercosur countries foresees the zeroing or sharp reduction of tariffs on the products and services of more than 90% of EU exports, a figure similar to that contained in Ceta. This is why as a food industry we are optimistic, and we believe that within a few years, we could double our exports and thus certify that the signing of the agreement was a choice made in the national and European interest and for the good of the country and businesses.