Saturday,
October 21, 2006
Italians Get Choosier About Food, Prefer
Quality and Italian
The
ANNOTICO Report
ITALIANS
GET CHOOSIER ABOUT FOOD
Most
want national produce and distrust Genetically
Manipulated (GM) products
(ANSA) - Cernobbio
October 20, 2006
Italians are increasingly picky about what goes on
their dinner tables, preferring products from their own country and dismissing
GM foods out of hand, a new survey shows .
According to a
study commissioned by the Coldiretti farmers' union,
some 74% of Italians believe that genetically manipulated foodstuffs are bad
for their health. This figure was up 4% on 2005 .
The survey
also highlighted a strong 'food patriotism', a widespread sense among the
population that Italian food was safer and better. Some 90% said they make an
effort to buy Italian food whenever possible. Half were even willing to pay
more if their tomatoes and oranges were Italian .
All of this
was music to the ears of Italian farmers, who have long been promoting their
own 'quality' products, contrasting them with inferior foreign produce .
"Italian
agriculture is the European leader for quality products," said Coldiretti chief Paolo Bedoni,
noting that ! the country had
the highest number of the EU's prestigious IGP and
DOP certifications .
DOP stands for
Denomination of Protected Origin and along with IGP, short for Geographical
Protection Indication, is a European Union certification of the unique
qualities of foodstuffs and specialities which are
made or grown according to traditional methods in specific areas
.
Moves in this
direction have jived well with the worries of Italian food buyers, made jittery
by regular food scares and fears that GM products will surreptiously
be pushed onto their plates .
"The
results of the study show that
"We have
to continue down the road to obligatory labelling in
order to give consumers more information and the market more
transparency," he added .
Being able to
see exactly where cheese and meat comes from is a must for many Italians these
days, Coldiret! ti's
survey revealed. High numbers said they often bought products whose origin was
certified and almost all said this ought to be stated on labels. The survey
also showed that 71% of Italians now buy organic fruit and vegetables regularly .
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