PUNTOITALY N°1 -January - June 2012

THE ITALIAN MAGAZINE FOR INTERNATIONAL BUYERS IN GELATO, CONFECTIONERY AND TRENDY FOOD-AND-DRINK Member associations of Artglace Austria: Gefrorenes aus Eigener Erzeugung - Gelato - Österreich; Belgium: A.r.a.g.f.; France: C.n.g.f.; Germany: Uniteis; Italy: G.a. (National committee for the defence and spread of artisan gelato and of own production); Ne- therlands: Ital; Portugal: Artogel; Czech Republic: Spolecenstvo Vyrobcu Remeslne Zmrzliny; Spain: A.n.h.c.e.a. Name: European Confederation of artisan gelato associations Set up in: 1988 Headquarters: Paris, France Secretarial office: c/o Longarone Fiere, Italy Operations office: temporarily at Melito di Napoli, Italy Main aims: to establish, tighten and develop links bet- ween the national or regional associations of artisan ge- lato makers of the member and candidate countries of the European Union; to defend and represent the interests of artisan gelato makers vis-à-vis the institutions of the Eu- ropean Union and of individual states; to defend traditio- nal production in each European country; to promote a European law governing the production of artisan ge- lato; to promote training and professional refresher courses for gelato makers; to promote exchanges with the technical/scientific world; to create a centre to promote and enhance the quality of artisan gelato; to produce a self-regulating code for gelato makers. Website: www.artglace.com Identikit of Artglace memorandum of understanding was signed with consumer associations to fix gelato prices, while the initiatives under- taken in 2010 were particularly numerous: the campaign for the defence of the environment which involved Austria, Ger- many, Italy, Netherlands and Spain; the coordination of activ- ities promoting artisan gelato in the context of European Gelato Day; the bill for the recognition of artisan gelato intro- duced at the European Parliament in Brussels (2010) and Strasbourg (2011). 2010 also saw Belgium becoming part of Artglace. What are the prospects for the development of Italian artisan gelato at international level? The prospects for development in Europe and in the rest of the world could be quite exceptional, provided all players in the production chain manage to agree on a common line of action for the good of the artisan gelato. Only an agreement between the various companies active in the sector can pro- duce the positive results that Italian artisan gelato deserves. What are the major problems in the spread of artisan gelato throughout the world? Artglace considers it vital to maintain the quality of artisan gelato as it spreads through countries outside Europe, and Artglace will take steps to set precise objectives for the future. The main thrust will be to coordinate and harmonise the ap- proaches to artisan gelato production and regulation within Europe, with a long-term programme stretching over a num- ber of years. Co-financing arrangements will be sought, in- volving the Ministries of Productive Activities and Agriculture of the member states and partner countries. • 17