Having recently said goodbye to Verona, Assoprol Umbria is now already preparing for Parma for the CIBUS scheduled for 7 to 10 May. But the echo of the Veronese presence is still strong with ASSOPROL UMBRIA protagonist of the 28th edition of “Sol International Olive Oil Trade Show”, an exhibition held as part of Vinitaly (14/17 April), with which Veronafiere confirmed the its central role in the promotion of quality agri-food: 97 thousand visitors, 30,000 foreign operators from 140 countries, 1200 top buyers from 65 nations selected in collaboration with Ice Agenzia.
The Umbria of quality oil was represented in an elegant and renovated stand reserved for producers belonging to Assoprol: Azienda Agraria Viola srl, Gnavolini Raccolta Sapore, Molino Il Fattore di Luigi Tega, Eugenio Ranchino, Malvetani Società Agricola sas , La Montagnola snc by Marcello Iraci Borgia Mandolini, Società Agricola Montenibbio srl and Valle di Francesco.
The producers were involved in meetings with enthusiasts, sector journalists and Italian and foreign buyers. The program of events organized as part of the Assoprol Umbria promotion program pursuant to the CSR For Umbria, SRG10 Intervention was intense, starting with the symbolic ‘ribbon cutting’ on the occasion of which Marco Viola, president of Assoprol Umbria, welcomed Donatella Tesei, president of the Umbria Region, Massimiliano Giansanti, president of Confagricoltura and Roberto Morroni, regional councilor for agriculture.
Of absolute importance was the visit to the Assoprol Umbria stand by the Hon. Francesco Lollobrigida, Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, who spoke with Marco Viola and the director Gianfrancesco Petroni, who in the conversation highlighted the need for interventions that can no longer be extended for the olive sector. The meetings held in the ‘talk’ area created at the center of the exhibition stand were well attended, where topics of great interest were addressed with transversal protagonists of the agri-food sector.
Opening the work of the round table on “Oleotourism as a tool for promoting certified organic, PDO and Sqnpi products” was Patrizio La Pietra, undersecretary of state of the Ministry of Agriculture with responsibility for olive growing, who in illustrating the projects of the Government dedicated to the sector, announced the imminent presentation of an Olive Plan which will fill the shortcomings of the sector.
The theme of oil tourism was then analyzed by Fabiola Pulieri, journalist, Federico Sisti, general secretary of the Umbria Chamber of Commerce, Tommaso Loiodice, president of Unapol, Filippo Gallinella and Gianfrancesco Petroni, director of Assoprol. The summary of the interventions highlighted how, unlike the wine sector, the olive sector still suffers from a lack of training for workers, which significantly limits the effective response to the requests of an expert and advanced tourist.
The meeting on “Strategies for the promotion of certified products” saw the participation of Pietro Bellini, president of the Consortium for the protection of Prosciutto di Norcia PGI, Carlo Hausmann and Arnaldo Peroni of the PGI Roma extra virgin olive oil, Pietro Nini, of the Consortium for the Protection of Wines of Orvieto, Marco Viola, president of Assoprol and Angela Terenzi of the Agriculture Department of the Umbria Region. The value of certifications as an essential tool for guaranteeing quality is central, which were followed by invitations to work to restore the role that belongs to the Consortium for the Protection of Umbria PDO extra virgin olive oil.
During the days of the event, there are frequent moments of tasting of the extra virgin olive oils of the companies present, certified Dop Umbria and Organic.
Federico Sisti, general secretary of the Umbria Chamber of Commerce, then presented the ‘Oro Verde dell’Umbria’ regional competition, while the tasting of the finalist oils of the 2024 edition was curated by Daniele Converso, Assoprol taster.
Finally, the participation in the appointment with Giorgio ‘Giorgione’ Barchiesi, the most loved innkeeper in Italy, was extraordinary. Objective focused on the “Umbrian snack” and its engaging value of conviviality: from bread and oil, to bread with oil and tomatoes, up to the contaminating provocation between the riches of different territories with bread with oil and mandarin jam.
