"I AM HERE TO MAKE A SERIOUS COMMITMENT BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT WANTS TO LISTEN AND SUPPORT THE WINE WORLD”, SAID THE ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER, MATTEO RENZI AT VINITALY. "THE GOAL FOR 2020 IS TO EXPORT 7.5 BILLION EUROS"

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The key parts of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s speech at Vinitaly: the importance of wine, the Expo, Europe, the goal of 7.5 billion euros in exports in 2020, and the desire to listen to the industry

“I am here to make a serious commitment because the government wants to listen to and support the wine world”, said Matteo Renzi, the Italian Prime Minister during his visit to Vinitaly, the most important Italian wine exhibition in the world. The Prime Minister’s speech testifies, as WineNews had anticipated with the presence of many Ministers, MPs and politicians, that a passion and keen interest with a new consideration for wine has been reborn.
"It is not a hobby or a game, but rather an important economic resource, just like agriculture is”.

"On behalf of the Government”, Renzi said in a press conference “there is a great desire to continue the work started, following a clear line, also emphasized in the economical and financial document (DEF) presented yesterday. Those who have never paid must pay, and those who have paid for others in these last 15 years have the right to begin collecting their due, and of course, we must not forget the great plan to rationalize spending that we are carrying forward in every industry. And agriculture, where we will intervene with some kind of tax relief, will do its part in the spending review”.

"I did not come here to Vinitaly just to shake a few hands and drink a few glasses of wine because it is very clear that wine and agribusiness are not a divertissement or a leisure activity, but a significant part of the our culture, lifestyle and most importantly, our economy. With this in mind, we must fix our targets: today, wine exports are at 5 billion euros; our horizon is 2020 when we should reach 7.5 billion euros, because we can do it. We, together with the men and women wine entrepreneurs have the potential. To achieve this goal, the Government’s visit to China in June will be crucial.
There will also be a business forum in which we want the wine world to participate, because there is still a lot of room for improvement. Extending the discussion to agribusiness”, Renzi added, “we are at quota 32 billion euros in exports and in the same frame of mind, the goal is to reach 50 billion euros that we believe are achievable goals. Together with the Minister for Agriculture Martina, We have made a commitment to achieve our goals and starting from today on the Agriculture Policies site, (www.politicheagricole.it) the project #campolibero will be presented. It is an action plan including 18 concrete initiatives to streamline bureaucracy in the agriculture world and we ask the professionals to give us their input, writing directly to the project’s email (campolibero@politicheagricole.it), so that on May 15th, Minister Martina will be able to submit the final report, together with the CAP strategy, which is worth something like 52 billion euros”.
Renzi answered Alessandro Regoli, director of WineNews, saying that Europe is fundamental and important for its agriculture and Italy, "which is a country that respects EU rules, can and must play a key role, as it has done so far, also thanks to my friend Paolo de Castro (Chairman of the Agriculture Committee of the EU Parliament, ed.)”.

“The Government takes full and sole responsibility for its commitments, considering so many other issues directly related to agriculture, such as the extreme amount of time it takes to clear customs, which certainly does not help agro-food exports. And then there's cultural work to do: there are contributions amounting to 75 million euros for young people in agriculture, and we must work to make working in the fields attractive because in the common mentality, it is seen as demeaning”.
And yet, 15 years ago it was difficult to find someone who wanted to become a cook, while today chefs are all the rage. We need to make agricultural work appealing, and I do not know if 75 million euros will be enough”. Renzi also mentioned, of course, Expo 2015. "It is important that Martina announced assigning the Expo 2015 wine pavilion at Vinitaly. It is an important occasion”.