Tony Loeb

🍾 Rum Diplomático introduces its exclusive Christmas Box for Christmas 2024, featuring a bottle of award-winning Rum Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva, aged up to 12 years, and two elegant tasting glasses. Targeted at those seeking a refined gift, it reflects Venezuelan passion, craftsmanship, and tradition. Priced at €45.90, it's available from major retailers and online. Diplomático is distributed in over 100 countries and was named "Spirit Brand of the Year" by Wine Enthusiast in 2018.

🥑 At the "Ercole Olivario – Sezione Olive da Tavola" competition in Perugia, Umbria, Oilivis srl from Puglia won 1st place in two categories with Leccino olives. Azienda Agricola Pisciotta srl from Sicily won in the "olive conciate - Castelvetrano method" category, and Azienda Olivicola Capuano Ss from Puglia topped the "olive conciate - Sivigliano method" category. The event highlighted the olive sector's growth potential, with an emphasis on quality production, sustainability, and international promotion. Winners will be promoted at upcoming events like Evolio Expo, SOL, and Olio Capitale. Mentions of merit were given to young entrepreneurs and organic companies. The awards ceremony is set for May 15-16, 2025.

🍵 Sandro Bonacchi highlighted the issues in Italy's coffee culture after a Rai 3 "Report" episode aired on December 15, 2024. Baristas often lack training, serve defective coffee, and are unaware of espresso preparation. The report suggests elevating consumer awareness and enjoyment of coffee, despite the raw coffee prices doubling last year without a proportional rise in cup prices. Bonacchi, a coffee expert since 2000 and SCA trainer since 2017, co-founded Umami Area Honduras and co-authored "Zero Caffè" with Andrej Godina.

📊 The 16th edition of the GS1 Italy Immagino Observatory reveals that Italian consumer habits are increasingly influenced by health, well-being, territory, and sustainability. Over 138,000 products, generating €47.7 billion in sales (83.4% of total channel turnover) in supermarkets and hypermarkets by June 2024, were examined. The study noted a positive trend in products linked to Italian authenticity, with a 2.1% increase in business volume, exceeding €11.3 billion. The 'free from' category grew by 3.0%, surpassing €8 billion, with a focus on products without sugars, hydrogenated fats, pesticides, residues, or glyphosate. Enriched products also saw a 3.4% annual growth, reaching over €5 billion, with proteins as the leading trend. Sustainability indicators were present on 84.8% of product labels, totaling 117,000 references. Petcare products for dogs and cats increased their turnover by 6.2%, nearing €1.2 billion. The report also explores the rise of e-commerce, analyzing 102,567 digitally tracked products. To download the report for free, visit osservatorioimmagino.it.