Christmas and New Year mark the triumphant return of panettone to Italian tables. With an increase in artisanal products. In the classic sweet challenge of the holidays, instead, The Pandoro moves back. This was the result of an investigation by CNA Agriculture and Food Economics among his employees.
There will be almost ten million families who have bought or will buy panettone during the 2021-2022 holidays. Conversely, the number of people choosing Pandoro this time is decreasing. The proportion of families choosing traditional regional products, perhaps not their own, is increasing. Finally, nougat is gaining an important, albeit smaller, place in the Christmas sweets market in both versions, soft or hard, although the sugar content tends to be lower.
The revenge of the artisanal product
Consumers are choosing artisanal products to purchase smaller quantities of high-quality candy. According to the survey conducted by CNA Agroalimentare The number of handmade panettone to be sold during the holidays has increased by almost five million. An increase of around 5.5% worth almost 130 million euros. Those who buy and taste the artisan panettone are mainly young people between 25 and 34 years old, living mainly in central Italy. In addition to the traditional variety, this year’s artisan panettone saw a dramatic increase in dark chocolate and especially pistachio flavors. An easily explainable success. Mass consumption cannot achieve sufficient margins with valuable and expensive raw materials such as pistachios, while artisanal production enjoys the trust of loyal customers.
Christmas dinner is better than Christmas Eve dinner
Research by Cna Agroalimentare also shows that in the preferences of Italians, lunch on December 25th is better than dinner on the evening of December 24th. More than half of compatriots, more precisely 52 percent, decide to have lunch with their closest friends on Christmas Day, while dinner on Christmas Eve, preferably a light one, stops at 38 percent. The remaining 10 percent of people don’t celebrate at all. This is an increasing proportion compared to previous years, likely compounded by fears of Covid contagion. Those who prefer lunch are women (53 percent compared to 41 percent for men), the youngest (between 18 and 34 years old) and residents of the north (66 percent of residents of the Triveneto and 57 percent of residents of the areas of the former industrial triangle) . Conversely, the dinner is appreciated by men (40 percent compared to 35 percent of women), in the age group between 35 and 54 years, as well as by residents in the south (52 percent), on the large islands (47 percent) and more in central Italy ( 44 percent).