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Sixteen producers of fine foods and drinks from the French island-region of Corsica will be at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair, which will be held in London from 7 to 9 September 2008. Members of the press are invited to attend a tasting event at the Taste of Corsica stand on Monday 8 September at 2.00 pm (Stand 462).
The positive response from British buyers to the producers present on the Corsican stand at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair in 2007 encouraged the Corsican Regional Authority (Collectivité Territoriale de Corse) to return to the event in 2008 – this time with a particular emphasis on companies that are just beginning to export their products. Visitors to the 2008 show will discover the typical flavours of Corsican produce, and will also be able to learn about the traditional ingredients and production methods used to create the region’s distinctive food products and drinks.
The following companies will be exhibiting on the Corsican stand at the Speciality and Fine Food trade show: Biscuiterie d’Afa (traditional biscuits), Brasserie Pietra (beer), Castagna Corsa (cakes and sweets made from chestnut flour), Charcuterie Fontana and Charcuterie San Mighele (traditional cured pork), Confiserie Saint Sylvestre (sweets, candied fruit, nougat and fruit bars), Corsica Gastronomia (pâtés, jams, ready meals and sweets), Corsic’Alive (olive oil), Fromagerie Pierucci and Fromagerie Ottavi (goat cheese, ewe cheese, brocciu and tomme cheeses), L’Atelier de la Noisette (various hazelnut-based products), Mattei Cap Corse (alcoholic beverages and liqueurs), Orezza (sparkling mineral water), Maison Savelli (traditional biscuits made from chestnut flour), A Paesana (sauces and chutneys), and Sedarc (plums).
Corsica is known as the Island of Beauty because of its stunning landscapes, and its produce reflects the island’s geography and history, making use of local delicacies including chestnuts, myrtle and citron (a large lemon-like fruit with thick aromatic rind). The food sector is Corsica’s largest industry and it has been experiencing considerable growth, with a turnover of €220 million and an 11% increase in the number of jobs since 1990. Most Corsican exports go to Western Europe (60%) – primarily to Great Britain, Germany, Italy and Scandinavia.
Corsica is France’s leading region in terms of the number of officially recognised and certified products, including Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) wines, brocciu cheese, olive oil and chestnut flour. Corsica is also the only French region to have obtained AOC status for its honey. (AOC is a certification that the product is made in a certain region and meets strict production criteria.)
The island also holds Identification Géographique Protégée (IGP – protected geographical identification) status for its clementines. Besides, there is official recognition of the Corsican pig breed and of the island’s distinctive pork meats. Organic products, which are identified by an official label, are also numerous and diverse. Such official labels of quality guarantee not only the product’s origin, but also the traditional methods of production and processing used to make it.
Wines were the first Corsican products to be given AOC status in 1975. There are now nine AOC-designated areas on the island, with 450 wine growers, many of whom cultivate the region’s traditional local grape varieties: Vermentinu, Niellucciu and Sciaccarellu. Although the French wine industry has been affected by a relative decline in sales, for their part, sales of Corsican wines, especially AOC wines, have actually been rising. Wine growing is the island’s leading business, with 7,000 hectares of vine and a €49-million turnover.
The Bastia & Upper-Corsica Chamber of Commerce is organising the Taste of Corsica stand at the Speciality and Fine Food Fair 2008 on behalf of the Conférence Régionale Inter-Consulaire de Corse (CRIC – a regional organisation promoting business in Corsica), in partnership with the Franco-British Chamber of Commerce (CCFGB) and FTPB, the press bureau of UBIFRANCE in the UK. UBIFRANCE is the French agency for international business development.
About the Bastia & Upper-Corsica Chamber of Commerce
The Bastia & Upper-Corsica Chamber of Commerce (CCI de Bastia) represents and promotes the interests of companies based in the Haute Corse (Upper Corsica) region of the island (i.e. the north of Corsica).
The Taste of Corsica stand at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair is part of the Corsican Regional Authority’s efforts to help Corsica’s 300 exporting companies and to develop a more export-oriented approach through the Corsexport initiative, which is being spearheaded by the island’s Agency for Economic Development.
Sixteen Corsican producers will be exhibiting on the Taste of Corsica stand (Stand 462) at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair, which will be held at the Olympia Centre in London (UK) from 7 to 9 September 2008.
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