In spite of everything, 2022 was a good year, thanks above all to exports: this is the snapshot of the Italian food machinery manufacturing industry provided by Assofoodtec, the Italian Association of Machinery and Plant Manufacturers for Food Production, Processing, and Preservation that operates within the Federation of Italian Mechanical and Engineering Associations (ANIMA) and Confindustria. Projections from Anima’s Studies Office suggest that the sector will close the year with sales totalling 4,560 million euros, up 4.5% on 2021. The contribution of exports to the total was particularly significant, accounting for 66% of the total.

Positive trends were recorded in all divisions: manufacturers of commercial and industrial refrigeration technologies, represented by Assocold, are forecast to reach a level of production worth 1,950 million euros (up 5.1% on 2021). The sectors represented by UCMA – Manufacturers of Machinery for the Food Industry – should record 1,557 million euros in 2022, a total sales increase of 2.8%, while the coffee division, grouped together under Ucimac – Manufacturers of Professional and Semi-Professional Coffee-Making Machinery – will close 2022 with production worth 545 million euros, three quarters of which came from exports. The technologies represented by Tecprofood – Manufacturers of Professional Food Technology Machinery – will record a production level worth a total of 233 million euros, 69% of which from export sales, while the sector represented by Comaca – Manufacturers of Meat-Processing Machinery – grew by 2.5%, with total sales of 275 million euros.

“We look ahead to the future with optimism, in a sector of Italian industry that is strong in know-how and quality production,” commented the president of Assofoodtec Andrea Salati Chiodini. “2023 will be an even more important year, also considering Assofoodtec’s participation in HostMilano, at Rho FieraMilano from 13 to 17 October, a trade fair that is a point of reference for all companies operating in the Horeca sector.”