“FOODIES” ARRIVE IN ITALY: 4.5 MILLION ITALIANS DEVOTED TO GOOD FOOD & WINE AND EVEN TAKE THE TIME TO STUDY IT ON INTERNET ACCORDING TO A GPF STUDY DONE IN COLLABORATION WITH NEGRONI INC AND CONDUCTED BY MARILENA COLUSSI

They are prevalently males between the ages of 24 and 54, they live in the northern regions of Italy, and study their passion online: these are the new “foodies” of Italy according to a study by Giampaolo Fabris, in collaboration with Negroni Inc, and conducted by Doctor Marilena Colussi.

Today in Italy there are 4.5 million foodies, the equivalent of 10% of the population and they are growing at a rate of 250,000 per year. They are very attentive to the relation between quality and price, 82% are willing to spend more for a higher quality product (the national average is only 54.1%), and though supermarkets are not snobbed, they also frequent delicatessens and local markets. Italian foodies love to investigate the foods and wines that are available and often invite friends and family to share in their finds (2 to 4 times a month). 82% prefer to cook particular dishes and, while the primary source of recipes is word of mouth (59%), internet is also frequently used (40%), as well as classic cook books (45.9%).
As for wine, 68.5% choose wines alone, while 64% follow advice from friends, magazines and internet are used 38.7% of the time, and advice from sommelier 46.2%.
Favorite restaurant guides are Gambero Rosso (52%), followed by Michelin (45.3%), l’Espresso 837.1%), and Touring Club (36.9%).