The PDO cheese with the biggest production rise between 2016 and 2022 is buffalo mozzarella from Campania, with an increase of 26% compared to the average increase of 10% for certified cheeses. Nine out of ten Italians have eaten buffalo mozzarella in the previous year, 25% at least once a week, and 20% willing to eat it also for breakfast. In 2022, exports are also booming, with a 9% volume rise compared to 2021 among the leading exporters. The production turnover of the supply chain has reached 530 million euros, but the development of the sector is threatened by three factors that exploded in 2022: increased inflation (+17% for cheese and dairy products), increased production costs, and loss of consumer purchasing power, which have already resulted in a decline in the supply chain's profitability. Even in 2023, the loss in profitability will remain in the forefront of the industry's worries. In 2022, 55 million and 814 thousand kilos of mozzarella were produced, with a growth of 3.8% on the previous year. Similarly, the number of buffalo mozzarella has increased (from 321 433 to 374 289).
|