The 2019 Interprofessionale Pera conference was the occasion to reflect on the state of the pear sector, which does not look very good nowadays.
This situation does not refer to the current campaign, it has been going on for years.
Gianni Amidei, president of OI Pera
In the past, producer revenue was granted either in terms of price or quantity: when the production was high, the price dropped, whereas if production went down, price increased.
Today, it is not like this anymore. In the last years, prices were not good enough to ensure an income to the producers, regardless of the production drop.
If this situation persists the negative economic consequences would be terrible for the entire pear farming sector.
They stated from the interprofessional organisation, "Therefore, it is our duty to ask the right questions in order to find the right answers to this crisis".
OI Pera pointed out again how the disaggregation and the consequent excessive competitiveness within the productive world itself are the main causes of this trend. Thus, the great distribution could 'dictate the tempo' to the producers, exactly because of the sector fragmentation.
The situation is made even worse by the widespread awareness that the '10 cents more to the production' - which sometimes meant the survival of farming companies - are not helpful to supermarkets too, as the sector consumption does not grow, according to the data.
OI Pera stated, "We need to develop a plan so that the market will recognise the quality and value of the production. The price must take this into account. Our interprofessional organisation aims at promoting all the necessary conditions to protect the Italian pears' competitiveness. One of these surely is a strong marketing organisation that matches the MMR. Also, we need to learn how to communicate the value and healthiness of our produce to the customers.
100% of Italian produce was in compliance with the healthiness EU regulations, whereas the European average is of 1.6% non-compliant produce.
The organic sector reflects those characteristics. However, traditional Italian pears are just as healthy and safe because producers follow strict integrated and sustainable production regulations.
Even though OI Pera cannot carry out marketing activities, it can be an extremely useful tool to help the development of every process through communication projects, promotions, information exchange, and especially through the construction of a synergy between the producing world, institutions and the great distribution.
A responsible commitment is also necessary within OI Pera, and the willingness to carry on projects to rebuild the world of one of the greatest Italian products.