July 2 – Less jobs, less dinner dates. The economic crisis has changed America’s eating habits. New trends and lifestyles are shifting consumption impacting the food industry. Americans eat more at home and for this reason are more careful to their buying choices. The average consumer spends about $ 110 a week to eat and a quarter is spent on food specialties. One-third of U.S. consumers buy specialty food because they have seen it used in a cooking TV show. These foods cooked at home 1/3 of the time and come from: America (92%), Italy (79%), Mexico / Latin America (63%), and China (42%). This is the outline of new American food trends emerging at the “Summer Fancy Food” in New York, where Unaprol and ICE conclude the first operating agreement on extra virgin olive oil, after two years of successful collaboration between the public and private sectors, with incoming operators, buyers and journalists from Italy; promotional events abroad and educational workshops; awareness in the general consumer the United States, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Austria, Belgium and Russia. The United States is a market of choice for Italian oils. Compared to 2011, in 2012 supplies from Italy increased in volume by 10%. The United States bought from Italy about 110,000 tonnes of virgin oils for a corresponding value of €307 million and Italy holds a share of 54% in quantity and 58% in value of U.S. imports of virgin olive oil. The analysis shows a trend in line with the volume data and a 9% progression compared to 2011. Regarding retail sales in the U.S. market, olive oil, within the types of oil sold, represents 15% by volume and 37% in value. Of the total oil sold in liter packs, 59% is represented by extra virgin olive oil and 62% is glass packaging, yet the half-liter bottle is the most sold.
