Food processing and refrigeration: a story with a future

Among the many cold storage and food processing devices present in the Ho.Re.Ca. sector and in the large-scale retail trade, are slicing machines. Italy’s long tradition in this field dates back to 1873 when a young mechanic from Bologna, Luigi Giusti, invented and presented the first mechanical cold-meat slicer.

However, the best-known firms operating in the sector in Italy did not come along until the years between 1935 and 1945: these businesses (some of which are still operating) continued their activities and gave rise to manufacturing bases first in Lombardy and Emilia Romagna and then in the regions of Veneto and Tuscany, with highly specialised spin-off industries. “Right from the foundation of these concerns the inclination towards exports has helped to give Italian mechanics a good name around the world, thanks among other things to the constant adaptations that are made to products to suit different uses and customs, changes in construction techniques and the evolution of legal requirements for the sector. Untiring inventiveness has led to the development of more and more products and processes and enabled entrepreneurs – despite the typically small scale of many Italian business concerns – to compete with major international players,” explains Andrea Salati Chiodini, president of the association of manufacturers of  food slicers,meat mincing machines and similar equipment.

The sector has seen a slow but constant growth in output and exports (up an expected 30% on 2010), due mainly to the demand for high-quality “Made in Italy” equipment, which still enjoys considerable appeal in the professional products sector. Key markets are Asia (the Middle and Far East), Europe and countries bordering on the Mediterranean. “Firms operating in our sector innovate, invest and manufacture in a way that primarily aims to avoid energy and food wastage, as well as guaranteeing the safety of those operating the machines. Looking forward to the future without ever losing sight of our past has enabled us to become the first country in the world to produce professional food processing machinery. For the future we envisage regroupings, greater collaboration with universities and other entities and greater attention to sustainability, as well as continuing to focus on innovation and user and consumer safety,” Salati Chiodini says.

The subject of sustainability and zero waste is particularly relevant to the food refrigeration technology sector, in a world in which one third of all food is thrown away because of poor storage conditions. In this field Italy, which exports around 1.5 billion euros worth of products out of a world total of some 21 billion world exports, ranks third alongside the United States and Germany, and behind China and Japan. “But if we consider refrigeration equipment for the commercial sector alone, Italy’s share of total exports rises to an impressive 20%, thanks to exports worth one billion euros out of 4.8 billion euros worth of total exports,” comments Marco Nocivelli, president of the association of refrigeration systems manufacturers. “Italy has successfully asserted its supremacy as the leading manufacturer in a field that is penalised as far as exports are concerned because of the sheer physical size of the equipment involved.” This is one reason why most exports are still concentrated in Europe, a fact that suggests there would be great potential for exports to other parts of the world, especially to the Asian market.”