MILAN, July 2 (Class Editori) - The COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on the catering sector, in particular the Italian one, has changed the outlooks of Olitalia company, from Forlì. The total turnover will drop by about 10%, while the one related to food service by 50%; however, the slowdown of 2020 will be balanced by exports, in particular towards China, South Korea and Taiwan, thanks to the e-commerce on specialized platforms and an increase in the large-scale distribution, also in Italy.
According to the esteems recorded after the first semester, the recovery is related to the sales on international level, also thanks to the partnership with Lidia Bastianich in the USA.
The Asian market alone accounts for 40% of exports. It is the strong asset of Olitalia: Taiwan, South Korea, China and Japan represent an area with great potential, although they are countries where Italian products have to be explained: Chinese people, for instance, appreciate extra-virgin olive oil but do not know how to use it. Olitalia focuses on training courses addressed to importers and dealers.
The product changes as well, and the recipe is not the same of the one sold in Italy. Tastes are different and therefore blends which are appreciated by different culinary cultures are studied. Olitalia can rely on 20 professional taste testers and on a laboratory, namely a research center, where the new blends are developed.
Vinegar as well has reached the Asian market, and has been changed and rethought, by taking into account that in these countries vinegar is considered a refreshing drink. Rice, apple and other kinds of vinegar – in a pure or diluted form – can be found on the beverage shelves and is particularly loved in South Korea.
A further boost will come from the direct e-commerce channel, which Olitalia aims at developing by the end of 2020.
"Despite the problems related to the pandemic – as the chairman Angelo Cremonini has explained – we continue to carry out important projects, such as O.I.L., Olitalia Innovation Lab, our laboratory, the academy where we organize training courses, which represents a key asset for us and a meeting place where it is possible to exchange ideas and knowledge, with the aim of promoting the product culture, both as for oil and balsamic vinegar."
Founded in 1983, Olitalia is focused on oils and vinegars production, which has been offering for more than 30 years, a wide range of extra virgin olive oils, seed oils and vinegars. The company, specialized in food-service, a sector in which is leader in Italy, is guided by Angelo, Elisabetta and Camillo Cremonini, sons of the Inalca co-founder Giuseppe Cremonini, who with more than 50 years of experience in the food sector, has become an icon of quality and tradition of the Italian gastronomy worldwide.
The two factories of Olitalia and Acetaia, based in Forlì and Spilamberto (Modena, Italy) with 130 employees, generated in 2019 a turnover of €175 million, which recorded an increase in comparison with €165 million of the previous year; they produce in overall more than 100 million litres per year. In 2019, food service and retail accounted for almost 50% of the Italian turnover each, whereas, in foreign markets, retail sector accounts for 70%.
Cremonini family is expecting to achieve good results already by this year, also thanks to the agreement between Olitalia and Filiera agricola italiana for the production of the first high oleic sunflower oil, 100% Italian and of traced production, with an high level of oleic acid (omega-9 fatty acid) which contributes in keeping the normal levels of cholesterol in blood by providing an excellent quality in frying processes.
A further target is to promote quality with the new oils line "I Delicati", both for food service and retail.
Meanwhile, the company has obtained the recognition of its balsamic vinegars' quality by the German association Stiftung Warentest that, through the pages of its magazine called Test, has notified the results of a series of analyses. On the top, the highest position, there is the PGI 5 Bunches, aged in the Giuseppe Cremonini Vinegar Cellar in Spilamberto (Modena, Italy). It is about a 100% natural reference with a smooth consistency, a high density (equal to 1.33 g/l), 73% of cooked grape must and an aging in barrique of at least three years. Quality without forgetting sustainability.
In addition, Olitalia has launched the project "Plastic no more" with the aim of reducing by 30% the consumption of plastics.
(Source:Class Editori)
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