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Pasta shelf in a Düsseldorf Edeka store: Corona boom
Photo: Wolfgang Rattay / REUTERS
Consumers in Germany brought the Italian pasta industry strong export growth in the 2020 corona year.
Compared to the previous year 2019, according to the Italian trade association, exports of pasta from the Mediterranean country to the Federal Republic rose by around 20 percent.
"For us, Germany is the number one export market," said Luigi Scordamaglia from the Filiera Italia food association.
In contrast to other Italian economic sectors, where exports fell during the pandemic, the food industry was doing good business.
According to Filiera Italia, more olive oil and cheese from Italian production arrived in Germany.
Another export success from Italy was rice.
But nothing could beat the noodle.
"Pasta is one of those products that 'exploded' in consumption during the pandemic," Scordamaglia said.
In Germany it is a very popular product anyway.
The expert attributed the historically high sales to, among other things, the higher demand in corona times and the simple preparation.
At the beginning of the pandemic, in the first shutdown last spring, pasta - along with toilet paper and yeast - was one of the most popular goods.
They were sold out in many supermarkets, and at the beginning of April the Aldi discount chain even had pasta transported from Italy to Germany by special trains.
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fdi / dpa
