The importance of this concept and its multifaceted applicability to various declinations was reflected on this morning during the conference " Dop and Igp a social and sustainable model to be protected " , held at the Modena Chamber of Commerce by Piacere Modena at which brought greetings from the Undersecretary of State for Agriculture Giacomo La Pietra .
The conference was sponsored by Masaf, the Emilia Romagna Region, the Municipality and Province of Modena, the Modena Chamber of Commerce and the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia and was attended by, moderated by Federico Desimoni, Director of the Modena Balsamic Vinegar Consortium, Luigi Foffani, professor professor of Criminal Law at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Cesare Mazzetti President of Qualivita, Mauro Rosati General Secretary of OriGin and Director of the Qualivita Foundation. Andrea Bosi, Councilor for Legality of the Municipality of Modena and the MEP Hon. Paolo De Castro .
The Deputy General Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce Massimiliano Mazzini , the Councilor for Productive Activities and Tourism of the Municipality of Modena Ludovica Carla Ferrari, the Councilor for Agriculture, Food, Hunting and Fishing of the Emilia Region intervened to convey institutional greetings. -Romagna Alessio Mammi and the President of Piacere Modena Enrico Corsini , who was keen to confirm how " an increasingly sustainable PDO and PGI model is what we need and that sustainability applied to the denomination system today is a current issue on which it is useful to take stock, especially for the Modena area which is one of the most important geographical indication basins in the country. We want to involve all stakeholders by transferring information to them on what tools they will have at their disposal to enhance the supply chain, sustainability will be one of the key points ".
Councilor Alessio Mammi echoed this: "I always repeat, we are the agri-food heart of the country. Between DOP and IGP products we are talking about 3.6 billion euros of production in Emilia-Romagna out of 7 billion at national level, and the sector agri-food as a whole is worth 20 billion euros and guarantees a high employment rate. Agriculture employs 70/80 thousand people, agri-food has hundreds of thousands; there are many jobs, good economy, distribution of wealth With the agreement reached on the Regulation of Geographical Indications thanks to the commitment of the Honorable Paolo de Castro we have brought home a great result for the protection of our excellences and their international promotion: in particular products such as balsamic vinegar Modena PGI and PDO balsamic vinegars from Modena and Reggio Emilia will therefore be better protected"
The recent success obtained by the MEP the Hon. Paolo De Castro with the agreement reached on the Reform of the GI System during the trilogue on 24 October with a clear strengthening of the role of the Consortia and which establishes the importance of sustainability linked above all to legislative, economic, environmental and social aspects, all the protagonists of the DOP Economy, invited by Piacere Modena, agreed. The speech by Professor Luigi Foffani, professor of Criminal Law at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, highlighted that it is now necessary to reflect on the role of current criminal law in correlation with the legislative innovations of European origin, one of which is the "Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence" Directive which could change the corporate approach on the subject of production sustainability and corporate responsibility as well as having introduced reflections on national law and supranational, European and international law .
The Honorable MEP Paolo De Castro focused his speech on the latest developments that have emerged at the level of the European Parliament and on what could be the new scenarios of community legislation on the topic. “ Starting from 2024 – explained De Castro – producers and farmers will be able to count on a new European Consolidated Law on quality production which provides for a strengthening of the role of Consortia and protection for PDO and PGI, as well as greater transparency towards consumers. In particular, he added, the obligation to indicate the name of the producer on the label of any PDO and PGI will be introduced to eliminate undue exploitation of the reputation of our GIs. Even online, thanks to a geoblocking system of illicit content on the internet. The new Consolidated Law for European quality – he concluded – will be the only legislative act of this legislature to support an increasingly competitive, sustainable, integrated and capable of creating added value agricultural and agri-food sector”.
One of the fixed points on which the concept of sustainability and competitiveness is built is that there is no sustainability without fair competition. The words of the President of the Qualivita Foundation Cesare Mazzetti go exactly in that direction, reiterating how it is necessary to move on multiple pillars. “GIs represent an opportunity for sustainable economic development for local communities, while preserving traditions and natural resources – he explained – and the Qualivita Foundation has dedicated itself to the research and study of economic, social phenomena for over 20 years and environmental issues concerning PDO and PGI agri-food production. The system of Geographical Indications in Italy has developed on models and control systems that have allowed for great development, but it is also a system that frequently suffers from unfair competition that is harmful to the balance of the supply chains, which must be countered with administrative and judicial actions , but also with correct consumer information and a strong awareness on the part of the operators involved ."
There is an increasingly widespread opinion that sustainability is becoming an integral part of the value chain of the entire supply chain and that today it represents the link with profit and turnover trends much more than in the past.
“The Geographical Indications – explained the General Director of OriGin Italia and Director of the Qualivita Foundation Mauro Rosati – are born from the concept of “durability”, in place and over time, which above all means sustainability. It will be the task of the Consortia to convey the GIs in the new socio-economic context, in which the issues of social responsibility will be crucial to give the product a value that embraces the issues of environmental, economic and social sustainability. The Protection Consortium is responsible for defining and managing the social responsibility of the supply chain, to be expressed in an understandable message and in a culture spread first and foremost to its own companies and then to consumers".
In Rosati's words, we can read in particular the recognition as an asset that the Consortia have at their disposal to communicate the new paradigms of the PDO PGI supply chain, of direct experience through food and wine tourism, which can offer concrete feedback on the concept of sustainability, showing the behavior and work of supply chains in the territories.
"Quality, competitiveness and legality - underlined the Councilor for Public Works, Maintenance and Decoration of the City, Historic Centre, Labor Policies and Legality of the Municipality of Modena Andrea Bosi - are linked in a synallagmatic relationship for the creation of a socio-economic model that has made our Territory great. These characteristics are oriented towards the production of a paradigm oriented towards sustainability which must be protected and promoted as a virtuous example".
PDOs and PGIs in the world - There are currently 3285 PDOs and PGIs in the world, of which 1660 relating to the food sector and 1625 relating to wine. In Europe alone there are 3064, of which 1451 are food and 1613 are wine, testifying to the leading role of the Old Continent in the field of Geographical Indications. Among the most influential countries there is therefore Italy - which has 848 PDOs and PGIs, where the wine sector prevails with 527 GIs over the food sector which has 321 - and, within it, the most Emilia Romagna is undoubtedly representative, which alone has 45 PDOs and PGIs, of which 30 are wine and 15 are food. And, in even more detail, the province of Modena, with 27 DOP and IGP products of which 21 in the food sector and 6 in the wine sector.
Who is Piacere Modena – Piacere Modena is a project to valorise the territory, its tradition, its history, conveyed by the great value that DOP and IGP agri-food products have. But also the brand of the company to which the main consortia for the protection of PDO and PGI in the province of Modena belong. The project was born with the support of the Modena Chamber of Commerce and the protection consortia and its main task is to promote the territory on the national and international market, as well as increase awareness of our products. Piacere Modena is synonymous with PDO and PGI excellence: the objective is to consolidate the growth trend of the agricultural sector closely linked to the processing companies present in the area, to create economic and employment development as well as qualify and enhance hospitality and tourist incoming .
