Tony Loeb

🍴 By 2025, restaurant experiences will be modular, inclusive, and focused on wellness with an emphasis on natural, healthy ingredients. Technological innovations such as TheFork Pay for bill splitting, AI for traffic prediction, prepayments, personalized experiences, smart inventory management reducing food waste by up to 20%, 3D food printing, dynamic pricing, and process automation will transform the industry. Ingredients will lean towards functional superfoods, natural beverages, and traditional dishes with contemporary twists, while unsustainable ingredients and overly complex menus are set to decline.

📊 Conserve Italia published its "Sustainability Report 2024" titled "Together to make a mark," continuing a triennial tradition since 2004. President Maurizio Gardini highlights the report's emphasis on collective efforts towards sustainable development, aligning with the UN 2030 Agenda. The cooperative, with a 20-year sustainability journey, has paid over €100 million to its members and invests in ethical management, training (34,475 hours through Conserve Italia Academy), and environmental initiatives, including an €86.6 million investment plan to be completed by 2026. Conserve Italia, headquartered in San Lazzaro di Savena (BO), leads Italian food processing with 14,000 producers, 500,000 tons of produce, €1.2 billion turnover, and 3,000 employees across 12 production plants.

📅 On January 15 and 16, Marca by BolognaFiere, the exclusive event for Organized Modern Distribution in Italy, will feature Melandri Gaudenzio (Hall 29, Stand C18) at Bologna's fair district. The company, a leader in the import, selection, packaging, and marketing of pulses, cereals, soups, and oilseeds from conventional and organic agriculture, will introduce Crunchy, a new natural snack, and a doypack line of Decorticated legumes. Melandri Gaudenzio, established in 1947, operates from a 12,500 sq. mt. facility in Bagnacavallo (RA), showcasing Industry 4.0 standards. Chef Fabrizio Mantovani will perform show cooking at the event, highlighting the versatility of the company's products.

🍷 Assoenologi introduces "Portami a Casa" to encourage responsible wine consumption and ensure road safety. Italian wine producers and restaurant owners will offer personalized shoppers to clients for safely taking home unfinished wine bottles, promoting moderate drinking and reducing the risk of drunk driving. This initiative preserves the wine tradition without compromising safety, responding to strict alcohol consumption regulations and the use of tools like alcolock.