Development prospects for the Italian beer industry: Craft breweries and local promotion

Abstract

According to the Annual Report of AssoBirra, the most important Italian firm with an institutional and protection role, the production of beer is exponentially increasing since 2009 leading Italy at the 9th place in the ranking of European producers. Therefore, the impact on the Italian economy does not go unnoticed both for the internal production and for what concerns export. Starting from the definition of beer, in the first part of this paper we will discover its history, the raw materials and their processing to reach the marketable product. We will then analyse the different aspects that can link this type of production to the national territory, in particular if the physical, human, financial, cultural and social capital could constitute the essential substrate for such an economic activity. In the central section, the attention will be focused on the consumer in order to define all the main features of the demand. We will then proceed to a brief outline of the legislation that regulates the market in the sector, both on a national and on a European level. Through a detailed analysis of the sector and its norms, a screenshot of the current situation will appear, in the light of which a feasible future scenario can be drafted with its development prospects. This paper aims to prove that the demand for craft products is in strong growth, due to its link with the territory, and, where strengthened, it can determine a promising potential for the development of the reference market.