Strengthening the role of AFIDOP at all levels, continuing on the path of internationalisation by playing the card of the quality and distinctiveness of Italian PDO cheeses: these are some of the future objectives of the Italian PDO and PGI Cheese Association
«The only way to cope with tariffs is to focus on quality»: with these words, the president of AFIDOP - Association of Italian PDO and PGI Cheeses, Antonio Auricchio, reiterated the association's commitment to guaranteeing and promoting the excellence of certified Italian cheeses. A central message at AFIDOP's annual assembly, which took stock of the successes and future challenges of the protected Italian cheese sector.
One of the most debated topics was the US duties on EU imports introduced by Trump, and PDO and PGI cheeses are among the products that will be affected. In fact, the USA is the leading non-European market for Italian cheeses: 40,900 tonnes were exported last year alone, 80% of which are PDO. As is known, the US administration has suspended half of the increase decided on 2 April until 9 July. Therefore, “only” +10% is currently in force, but reasoning on the overall expected +20%, on the customs value, it is possible to estimate a total cost for duties of almost 150 million euro, about 100 million euro, which adds up to 50 last year. In this context, the problem is well felt by PDOs, as they are responsible for more than 4/5 of the cheese export volumes to the US. And in particular for the triad Parmigiano Reggiano, Grana Padano and Pecorino Romano (95% of PDO cheese exports to the US).
«The application of additional duties does not end with effects on the amount of taxation on our products, on prices for the American consumer, or on consumption volumes, but it also creates a serious risk of fuelling phenomena that are harmful to our economy such as Italian sounding. These measures would therefore not only penalise our certified productions but, by appealing to consumer confidence, would open the way to local products that, by imitating our PDO cheeses, would be favoured» stressed the AFIDOP president.
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