MADE IN ITALY: A LIST OF TRUE ITALIAN RESTAURANTS ABROAD ESTABLISHED BY THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AGRICULTURAL POLICIES TO COMBAT “FAKE FOOD ”. QUALITY ITALIAN RESTAURANTS ABROAD ARE THE BEST PROMOTION FOR MADE IN ITALY FOOD IN THE WORLD

A plaque will guarantee the true Italian restaurant abroad that uses Italian products and respects traditional recipes, in order to avoid nasty surprises such as imitation tagliatelle alla bolognese served with “meatballs” or tiramisu with mascarpone cheese made in Wisconsin. The Ministry of Agriculture, with a decree that establishes “the list of quality restaurants abroad”, has promoted the initiative.
Restaurants and chefs that become qualify to be on the list can display a plaque that reads “Excellent - Quality Italian Restaurant” with the Ministry of Agriculture logo. An online travel guide will also be provided to facilitate finding true Italian restaurants abroad.

“The aim of this decree is to recognize the truly Italian restaurants and also promote our food products abroad,” said Minister Galan presenting the initiative together with the Deputy of the group leaders, Antonio Razzi. Razzi has been fighting for a long time for better protection of Italian restaurateurs abroad that have been damaged by fake Made in Italy products. The economic damage to the Italian food system, according to the latest estimates, is around 60 to 80 billion euros. “It would be great if we could recoup even half of that figure”, says Razzi. “We do not even take into consideration the alleged Italian restaurants offering Parmesan,” said Minister Galan, “because a terrible tasting fake Made in Italy product also damages the original product”.
Among the requirements in order to be put on the list of quality Italian restaurants abroad, the restaurateur must purchase Italian origin ingredients, part of which must be PDO; the wine list must have a significant number of Italian wines, while pizzerias must offer Italian beers on their menus. The menu must also include a dish prepared exclusively from products of Italian origin, in the Mediterranean diet tradition and the menu must state the origin of raw materials as well as explaining the recipe of traditional Italian specialties. Buonitalia, in collaboration with the Italian Post Office, is planning to activate an e-commerce site to facilitate the sale of Italian products abroad.





Focus - The requirements to be included in the list “Quality restaurants abroad”

The fundamental purpose of the decree issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Policies is to defend and promote the Italian food and wine tradition and cuisine in the world. The list of quality Italian restaurants abroad provides that the restaurants on the list are also identified by an ad hoc plaque, that reads “Excellent - Quality Italian Restaurant”, with the logo of the Ministry of Agriculture. In the short term, there are two main advantages: first, to allow consumers to know and recognize “real” Italian restaurants that use Italian raw materials and cook according to Italian tradition and second, to increase the sales of Italian food products abroad by starting a competitive mechanism among the quality restaurants themselves.
Among the requisites to be on the list, the decree provides that the restaurant:

- has purchased ingredients of Italian origin, part of which is DOP (protected domination of origin) labeled;

- offers a wine list with a significant number of Italian wines, in particular DOCG, DOC and IGT (denomination of origin controlled and guaranteed, denomination of origin controlled, typical geographic indication). Pizzerias instead are required to offer a selection of Italian beers on the menu;

- has at least one dish on the menu prepared exclusively from products of Italian origin, according to the tradition of the “Mediterranean Diet - Unesco World Heritage”;

- includes on the menu, the origin of raw materials and explains the recipe for traditional Italian specialties.
With this official document, the Ministry of Agriculture intends to support and promote a circuit of Italian restaurants in the world that represent a true showcase of the excellence of Italian food.