In the period 2008-2011, according to data from the Unioncamere Emilia Romagna, the food sector in Parma exported goods to 136 countries, and in 79 of these, provincial products managed to gain market share. An analysis of the economic situation carried out by the Unione Parmense degli Industriali (UPI), confirms that 80% of the food businesses that achieved a growth in turnover in 2012 export their products.
Prosciutto di Parma, with a value of exported production in 2011 of €300 million, accounted for 67% of the meat-based DOP and IGP products exported; Parmigiano Reggiano, with 435 million Euro of the value of production exported, accounted for 38% of the total value of Italian DOP and IGP cheeses exported.
The food sector in the first half of 2013 exported a total of 635 million Euro, with a growth trend – compared to the same period of the previous year – of 5%. Specifically, in the main sectors, there was an excellent result for "Parmigiano, milk derivatives" equal to +10%, a healthy result for "hams and salami" of +5%, and also for "pasta, sweets, ice creams, frozen and precooked foods, etc..." at +6%. Instead there was a negative trend in the variation of exports of 'vegetable and fruit conserves" at -8%, while there was an increase in exports of canned fish which had suffered a sharp decline in the years 2010 - 2011, but by now seems to have recovered well.
Traditionally, Europe (EU28) is the first target market for food from Parma: in fact it accounts for 75% of total exports, and 83% if we consider European countries outside the EU (Russia, Switzerland, Norway, ...). In particular, the main countries Made in Parma food products are destined for are France (24%), Germany (20%) and the United Kingdom (7%), which alone account for more than half of total global exports. In the first half of the year, food exports to Europe (EU28) rose by 1.6%, while maintaining a more intense pace towards European countries outside the EU.
Looking at total exports to EU countries, sales of food products to Germany are worth about a third and grew in the first half of 2013 by 3%. In this same period, there was a remarkable sales performance of more "niche" Made in Parma products: fish preserves (+47%) and oils up by +17%; instead there is continued consolidation in the export of meat preserves at +8%.
