Dec. 23 – Wines, sparkling wines, grappa, liqueurs, panettone, cheeses, meats and pasta, all made in Italy but enjoyed all over the world. Italian products marked a new record for sales abroad. According to Coldiretti data, exports during this Christmas period amounted to more than € 2.7 billion, according to the projections for December 2013. The unquestioned leader of these products is Italian sparkling wine, which scored a record increase in value of +16%, thus overtaking champagne sales. The main importers are the U.S., with a 24% increase, Russia (+31%) and the UK (50%) while purchases in China doubled. “The real increase – stressed Coldiretti – is in the value of exports: sparkling wine (+16%) panettone (+14%), wines ( +8%), cured meats (+5%), pasta (+4 %) and cheese (+3%),” according to Coldiretti elaborations on Istat data for the first nine months of 2012.
