Italian table grapes, rapidly growing exports threaten the primacy of apples

The export of Italian table grapes is soaring: between 2022 and 2023 it grew by 12.8%, reaching almost 821 million euros, Ismea estimates, despite the quantities exported decreasing by 13.5%, stopping at 384 thousand tons. The value of exports was therefore supported by the 30.4% annual increase in prices, which reached an average of 2.14 euros/kg. A signal that grapes made in Italy are able to be recognized and valued on foreign markets, where 43% of national production ends up. More than is eaten in Italy, given that the domestic consumer market absorbs "only" 38% of the total annual production, while another 15% is sold to processing companies to obtain juices. Italy is the third largest exporter of table grapes in the world, behind Peru and the Netherlands, and grapes are the second largest fruit, after apples, in terms of turnover generated by exports. But overtaking seems close. «In a short time the grape is destined to exceed 1.2 billion euros in exports, because it is ...