Rome to showcase Italy's wine & food excellence

Rome - 'Vinoforum - Lo Spazio del Gusto', is an event showcasing Italy's gastronomic and wine excellence. The event opened on Saturday, June 3 and runs until Monday, June 12. It will offer food tastings, exclusive dining, cooking shows, workshops, educational sessions and more. Food and wine will take the spotlight for 10 days during the 14th edition of this initiative that has been growing year after year. It has become even more popular due to its strong cultural appeal, its educational sessions and business opportunities. In the past 4 years, it reported a record involvement of firms in the industry (up 18 percent from 2014 to 2017) and an increasing number of visitors (up 5 percent). Hundreds of events have included top-level dining, food tastings, and temporary restaurants, including menus which offer 'fusions' of foods and feature the eagerly awaited 'Maestri in Cucina'.

Along with these, there will be the debut of 'Dispensa Italia', a showcase of the best of the national agrifood basket, including cheese, cold cuts, legumes, and vegetables coming from the most 'gourmet' areas of the country. Vinoforum also represents a business opportunity, welcoming incoming firms working in the industry. For the first time this year, and thanks to the cooperation with ICE - the Italian Trade Agency for the promotion and internationalisation of Italian companies abroad-, there will also be foreign buyers coming from France, England, Ireland, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Estonia and Poland. They will convene in Rome, offering an opportunity to promote and appreciate Italian products abroad.

Italian wine export figures prove that the product is constantly growing, reaching the record figure of 5.6 billion euro in 2016. "After 14 years, we have come to the mature phase of Vinoforum nationally," said Emiliano De Venuti, Vinoforum CEO. "Following in our footsteps, we feel the time is right to invite foreign buyers. Not only because Italy's agrifood, with wine at the forefront, is a major catalyst for our exports, but also because participating exhibitors deserve international business opportunities. Another innovation, especially for food and wine aficionados, is Dispensa Italia. It will provide a full immersion in Denomination of Origin products, guided by firms that have long been committed to the gastronomic excellence of our country." The better quality and quantity recorded in these past four years carries a greater participation of chefs and pizza-chefs, offering visitors a Grand Tour across the flavours of Italy.