Italy: Imports of durum wheat double while exports of pasta slow down

With over 2.6 million tonnes of durum wheat imported in the first ten months of 2023 - up 85% on an annual basis and which could double at the end of the year - the foreign deficit, historically around 35% , risks exceeding the 50 percent threshold for the first time. To take stock of the durum wheat campaign, the symbolic raw material of Made in Italy agri-food, we will have to wait for the end of the agricultural year (which runs from July to July) in the summer, but in the meantime the difficulties of the agricultural component, the first link supply chain, are evident. Prices, unlike costs, have collapsed by 35% since the start of the marketing campaign in July, discouraging investments with sowings already estimated to be down by 10% and delayed due to the climate crisis. The anomalous heat of December in fact delayed operations in all areas historically suited to wheat production. In 2023, from January to October, import spending exceeded 1.1 billion compared to less than ...