On July 4, 2022, the #FareRete food associations achieved a significant result at the Italian Gastronomy Roundtable: a financial allocation signed in the form of an implementing decree by the Minister of Agricultural Policies, Stefano Patuanelli.

This decree, which will be published in the Official Journal of the Italian Republic in the coming days, establishes the criteria for the granting of the "Capital Fund to Support Excellence in Italian Gastronomy and Agri-food."

The aim of this benefit is to promote and support the excellence of Italian catering, as stated by Minister Patuanelli himself.

How the fund works, its meaning and political reactions

How the financial concession works

This fund, allocated by the Budget Law, will amount to €56 million, divided into two years: the first €25 million in 2022, and the second €31 million in 2023.

The financial assistance will obviously have limitations: each individual business will be eligible for a maximum of €30,000, which must be used to purchase professional machinery and other durable and innovative capital goods. Therefore, this financial support will cover up to 70% of total investments for restaurateurs: a significant amount that will help boost the sector.

Affected restaurant sectors

The fund's beneficiaries are businesses that serve food (restaurants, bars, taverns, snack bars, takeaways, and delis with kitchens) as well as confectionery businesses that operate pastry and ice cream shops. To qualify for funding, these businesses must have been active and registered in the business register for at least 10 years, or alternatively, they must have purchased DOP, IGP, SQNPI, and SQNZ certified products and/or certified organic products (not natural or biodynamic products, but only certified ones) in the previous 12 months. The percentage of certified products purchased varies depending on the restaurant business: while for food service businesses, it must be 25% of total purchases, for pastry businesses, it must be only 5%.

The reaction of the associations of the #FareRete movement

The associations that are part of this movement that bears the hashtag #FareRete are the Italian Association of Ambassadors of Taste, the Professional Association of Italian Chefs, the Jeunes Restaurateurs d'Italia, and the Charming Italian Chef, all four of which are very important at the national and European level.

These associations, which strongly and decisively represent the high-quality Italian restaurant industry, welcomed the financial measure with great satisfaction, after long fighting for the representation of a sector that has experienced a profound crisis in recent years. Thanks to the ongoing dialogue with the institutions and also to Minister Patuanelli, who has always been close to and supportive of the restaurant industry, it was possible to achieve this significant outcome, which represents a new growth challenge for our country.

Comments from the Italian Association of Ambassadors of Taste

The Italian Association of Ambassadors of Taste commented on the news with two of its members, renowned chef Carlo Cracco and the association's director and coordinator of #FareRete, GianLuca De Cristoforo. Cracco stated that the implementing decree is a significant milestone and demonstrates once again that Italy and the association are capable of advancing concrete and structured initiatives. This shows that politicians are listening to the needs of restaurateurs and are on the same level. De Cristoforo, on the other hand, stated that a significant segment of the Italian restaurant industry has proven to be united and cohesive: a vision and method that have led to results that, until recently, were incredible, and are now evident.

The beginning of a path of cohesion

This measure is just the beginning of a series of future measures aimed at promoting and safeguarding the sector, and it is extremely important, as it is a government initiative aimed at repairing the economic (and other) damage caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has affected the vast majority of restaurateurs. It is also a useful fund for restarting and supporting the restaurant businesses hardest hit by Covid, thus ensuring the country's economic growth and addressing a strategic and essential sector for Italy.

Conkilia remains available to its clients for any questions regarding the functioning of this government fund and any other concerns that may arise.

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