In the USA, three out of four "Made in Italy" products are counterfeit

Tomatoes, spaghetti and cheeses are the most copied foods in the United States, where 1 in 4 Italian products is "counterfeit".

Italian sounding is an extremely powerful phenomenon in the United States, where there are numerous products passed off as Italian but which are nothing more than mere imitations. A business that is accused of draining at least 4 billion euros in resources from Italian agri-food production.

This and other problems of "made in Italy" were highlighted during the 5th national elective assembly of Cia-Confederazione italiana agricoltori.

One often thinks of less developed markets or Eastern ones as the standard-bearers of the counterfeiting of Italian food. Instead, the markets where Italian sounding runs rampant are first and foremost the United States, together with Mexico and Canada, which together account for almost half of total sales. The EU represents 39 percent: in France pseudo-Italian products are double the originals, in Germany and the Netherlands almost triple.

The figures appear staggering, especially if one considers the North American market: 97% of "Italian sounding" pasta sauces are pure and simple imitations; 94 percent of "Italian sounding" preserves in oil and vinegar are fake, and equally fake is 76% of "Italian sounding" canned tomatoes. Only 15% of "Italian sounding" cheeses are authentic.

If on shelves abroad it is easy to come across products with the most improbable names, of which only the name echoes anything Italian, even in restaurants it is possible to find "typical" dishes that bear no relation to the authenticity recognized and regulated in Italy, such as a plate of penne all'amatriciana with a sauce made up of an improbable mixture of bacon, tomato and onions that come from Wisconsin.

It is not only the industrial sector's turnover that loses out, but the very image of the country of Italy and of the "made in Italy" brand, so much so that in some countries such as Chile the counterfeit products arrive before the authentic ones.