"There are a number of high-quality potato growing regions in Italy, and for many years Veneto has rightly been considered one of the best in terms of quality," says Domenico Citterio, director of the company, which deals in seed, fresh market, and industrial potatoes.
"There has been an epochal change in recent years," he continues, "because, for the last 25 years, it was the buyer who had the most power in negotiations. But now we have moved to a seller's market: availability is lower than demand and at the same time the industry is absorbing more and more production. As a result, on average, prices are moving up rather than down. This is an epochal change."
"In recent years," says Citterio, "we have also seen hectares converted from production for the fresh market to production for the processing industry, which is increasingly demanding products. Because the market has clearly defined needs, consumer potatoes are grown by specialists. However, compared to fresh or seed potatoes, the industrial sector is currently the most important."
However, Italy is forced to import large quantities because domestic production does not meet domestic demand. "At the same time, we export significant quantities because our early potatoes are not suitable for long storage, so tubers dug in June and early July have to be sold and consumed relatively quickly. In contrast, later crops, both Italian and from the rest of Europe, are more suitable for storage and can therefore be marketed several months after harvest."
Citterio has been in the consumer and seed potato business for four generations. "We specialize in the selection of seed potatoes, which we import from the best seed companies in Northern Europe and distribute throughout the country. We also organize growing contracts with a number of selected farmers to meet our own needs, both in Italy and abroad. In the summer we export new potatoes from the best Italian production areas to northern Europe, while in the winter we supply Italian packing and processing plants with potatoes that we import from northern Europe," concludes Domenico Citterio.
For more information:
Domenico Citterio e C.
San Martino Buon Albergo - Verona (Italy)
Tel.: +39 045 87.80.144
www.citteriopatate.it