Speech by President Meloni at the Italian Embassy in London

Courtesy translation follows.

***

Good afternoon everyone.

I would like to thank Minister Francesco Lollobrigida for this initiative, and Ambassador Inigo Lambertini for hosting him in the wonderful setting of this residence, the “Home of the Italians” in London. I want to thank James Cleverly very much, Secretary of State, for being here today and for his wonderful words. Greetings to the participants in this morning’s workshop and to all the British guests who have accepted the invitation to this reception which celebrates the strong friendship between Italy and the United Kingdom.

Our nations are traditionally linked by a broad convergence of interests and values, strong economic and industrial partnerships, close cultural ties and civil society – which is also enhanced by the presence of a large community of populations. We also mentioned this in the meeting I had yesterday afternoon with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. We talked about a new phase of bilateral cooperation by signing a memorandum of understanding that will guide our relations for the coming years. There is full agreement on the common goals and on the path that Italy and the UK can take together to strengthen their already strong bonds.

The UK is a key partner for Italy in a number of cross-cutting sectors of economic and industrial cooperation: from energy to environmental sustainability and innovation. The work that our companies are doing today in the agro-food sector, which has traditionally been one of the strong points of our bilateral relationship, is symbolic. However, both countries recognize that there is untapped potential that we can still exploit given the extraordinary work of our trade associations that have supported the Ministry of Agriculture in today’s meetings. I would also like to thank the Institute of Foreign Trade, led by President Mateo Zupas, for the valuable work that it does every day.

Italian agricultural food is of high quality, and my government vigorously protects and promotes it through international markets. Production quality and values ​​defined in the traditions, ways and territories of our nation. All the elements that make “Made in Italy” food products a strategic asset for our economy and an essential element of our expertise internationally.

We are only at the beginning of our work, but we have already introduced several important measures in these first six months of government: from the cancellation of contribution for young farmers to the Technological Innovation Fund, from the extension of vouchers to support for new agro-entrepreneurs. Not to mention the work we are doing to promote the fight against counterfeiting and imitation of Italian food products, which cost billions of euros in sales every year and mean lower product quality.

This is a common battle for both Italian producers and consumers around the world. There is also a need to address structural and long-term challenges, including climate change and investment in innovation. Tradition and innovation have always been key ingredients of Italian agro-food know-how.

The Italian agri-food system is strong and healthy, with exports exceeding 60 billion euros in 2022, but we can achieve even higher goals, starting with the relationship between Italy and the United Kingdom.

Agricultural trade is one of the pillars of the Italian system. A strong “teamwork” between the public and private sectors, between institutions and trade associations, businessmen and workers in the region, in order to be stronger and more ambitious.

Within a week the coronation of Charles III will be celebrated. We know how much he values ​​the Italian landscape: a landscape created by generations of farmers. A legacy we are proud of.

Economy, culture, beauty, taste and health: five words that make up one nation: Italy!
I am sure we will be able to work together successfully!
We can make the difference!
You can always count on me!
Let’s roll up our sleeves!

thank you all.

***

Good evening everyone.

I would like to thank Minister Francesco Lollobrigida for this initiative and Ambassador Inigo Lambertini for hosting us in the wonderful setting of this residence, the “Casa degli Italiani” in London. I want to thank Secretary of State James Cleverly very much for being here today and for his wonderful words. Greetings to the participants in this morning’s workshop and to all the British guests who have accepted the invitation to this reception which celebrates the strong friendship between Italy and the United Kingdom.

Our nations are traditionally linked by a broad convergence of interests and values, by strong economic and industrial partnerships, cultural and close ties with civil society, and are also favored by a large community of populations. We also talked about it during a meeting yesterday afternoon with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. We talked about a new phase of bilateral cooperation, and the signing of a memorandum of understanding that will guide our relations over the next few years. There is full agreement on the common goals and on the path that Italy and the UK can take together to strengthen their already strong bonds.

The UK is a key partner for Italy in many cross-sectoral areas of economic and industrial cooperation: from energy to environmental sustainability and innovation. The work that our companies are doing today in the agro-food sector is symbolic, which has traditionally been one of the strengths of our bilateral relations. However, both countries recognize that there is untapped potential from which we can still tap, given the extraordinary work done by our trade associations that supported the Ministry of Agriculture in today’s meetings. I would also like to thank the Institute of Foreign Trade under the leadership of President Mateo Zubas for the invaluable work that he does every day.

Italian agricultural food is of high quality, and my government vigorously protects and promotes it through international markets. Quality products and values ​​that are defined in the traditions, ways and territories of our nation. All the elements that make “Made in Italy” agro-food products a strategic asset for our economy and an essential element of our knowledge at the international level.

We are still only at the beginning of our work, but in these first six months of government we have already introduced several important measures: from reducing the contribution for young farmers to the Technology Innovation Fund, from extending vouchers to supporting new agro-entrepreneurs.

Not to mention the work we are doing to strengthen the fight against counterfeiting and imitation of Italian food products, which cost billions of euros in sales every year and lead to lower product quality.

This is a common battle, both for Italian producers and for consumers from all over the world. There is also a need to address structural and long-term challenges, including climate change and investment in innovation. Tradition and innovation have always been key ingredients of Italian agro-food know-how.

The Italian agri-food system is strong and healthy, with exports exceeding 60 billion euros in 2022, but we can achieve even higher goals, starting with the relationship between Italy and the United Kingdom.

Agricultural trade is one of the pillars of the Italian system. A strong “teamwork” between the public and private sectors, between institutions and trade associations, businessmen and local workers, to be stronger and more ambitious.

The coronation of Charles III will be celebrated in a week. We know how much he appreciated the Italian landscape: landscapes created by generations of farmers. A legacy we are proud of.

Economy, culture, beauty, taste and health: five words that make up a nation: Italy!
I am sure we will be able to work together successfully!
We can make a difference!
You can always count on me!
Let’s roll up our sleeves!

thank you all.