Made in Italy in Chinese Market Emerging Issues for Italian Food

Abstract

Considering the rapid changes in Chinese food habits, in both quantity and quality, the study aims to outline the market potentiality of the made-in-Italy food and focus on some emerging issues concerning Italian specialities that are characterised by higher competitiveness. Starting from the definition of made-in-Italy food, the paper addresses the topic of food safety, analysing policies and legislation. Following an approach from macro to micro aspects, market trends are highlighted, and a ranking analysis is carried out, emphasising the positioning of made in Italy. Concerns related to transaction costs, information asymmetry, and adverse selection are discussed and the Italian sounding phenomenon is addressed. Growing practices of unfair competition, such as food piracy, result in several forms of market failure, damaging the segmentation strategies of Italian companies. Findings propose an estimate of unfair business and offer special indexes of evaluation. Finally, policy and business implications are addressed, and attractive and multiple fields for future researches are suggested.