Cooperation in the agrofood sector began during Expo Milano 2015, before the agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme was finalised.
Italy intends to tighten relations with Iran by bringing to the country companies, products and technical know-how in the sectors in which it is a leader, from sustainable agriculture to the designation of geographical origin.
‘We have scheduled an agrofood mission to Iran in February following the new relationship opened with this country and the mission led by Carlo Calenda, the Deputy Minister for Economic Development, last November,’ Mr Martina told AGI, the Italian news agency.
The first important moment in this relationship was on June 4 and 5, when the Iranian Agriculture Minister participated in the agriculture forum at the Milan Expo. The meeting gave rise to a bilateral agreement with Iran and marked a first step to develop a joint agrofood project.
‘As you can see, our collaboration began much before the signing of the agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme and gained momentum after it,’ he said.
‘Italy has acquired a know-how in the agrofood sector which has made it world leader in many aspects and Iran is willing to discuss the Italian business model, which is more advanced compared to that of other countries.’
The three key points of the Italian agrofood industry, Mr Martina said, are: ‘its sustainability, as Italian agricultural practices are the most environmentally friendly in all of Europe; the dimension of the companies, which on average are small and medium-sized; and the close integration between the raw material production chain and the processing industries. It is a model in which we are leaders and that can be exported.’