WINE: PROSECCO IMITATIONS AT 'REPORT', DAMAGES OF 100 MILLION IN 20 YEARS FOR SHOP

As widely seen in the investigation of the Rai 3 "Report" broadcast a few days ago, the "Italian sounding" is a problem that strongly penalizes the world of Prosecco as well. This is confirmed by Sandro Bottega, President of Bottega SpA , the historic winery in Bibano di Godega (TV): «The story of the Croatian Prosek is a striking example, even if in this case the Italian system has squared off within the EU. For over 20 years my company has had to deal with the problem of counterfeiting of its brands by competing companies. Bottega Gold, the Prosecco Doc characterized by the golden bottle, is our most imitated product, in addition to the sparkling Petalo Moscato. Even the Bottega brand is the object of imitations, which reproduce a similar lettering. Over the years, Bottega has initiated numerous legal actions, obtaining significant victories. The total damage to the company can be estimated at around 100 million euros in 20 years. In general, with regard to Prosecco, the most problematic countries, characterized by the production of wines that refer to the most successful Italian sparkling wine, are: Australia, Brazil, South Africa». The Bottega company confirms itself as a standard bearer of Made in Italy, as it contributes to the diffusion of the Italian brand in the world with the widespread distribution of wines, liqueurs and spirits in 160 countries on 5 continents. This historic activity is accompanied by the Prosecco Bar project which has, largely abroad, around 25 locations, within each of which a food and wine experience is offered, combining Italian cuisine with Bottega wines and spirits . Not only that, the Treviso-based company stands out for its patriotic stance, as it uses supplies that are over 98% Italian, in relation to all the semi-finished products and materials necessary to produce wines, grappas, gins and liqueurs. The remaining 2% comes from EU countries (0.8%) and non-EU countries (1.2% which refers to cane sugar, which by its nature comes exclusively from tropical countries). Sandro Bottega declares: «Glass bottles, caps, labels, cartons, autoclaves, cellar and distillery machinery, forklifts, etc... are predominantly Italian, not so much for an ideological choice, how much because our country is able to offer excellence in almost every sector. Furthermore, the geographical proximity allows us to study shared solutions with our suppliers and to carry out ad hoc wide-ranging projects, expressly calibrated for the needs of our company». In the near future, Bottega sets itself the goal of 99%, to guarantee the Italian origin of each component of its products, obviously with the exception of cane sugar.