Italy's DOP economy: €20.7 billion in 2024

Italy's DOP economy, the value of its protected food and wine names, reached €20.7¹ billion at production in 2024, which is 19% of national agrifood turnover.

€20.7 billion, and how fast it grew

The total rose 3.5% on the previous year and 25% on 2020, on the figures of the XXIII Ismea-Qualivita report, published in 2025 with 2024 data.

ISMEA is a public body and Qualivita is the foundation that co-authors the report. The ISMEA page for this edition couldn't be opened because of a certificate error, so the numbers rest on the report without that page beside them.

Wine is bigger, food is faster

Wine DOP and IGP were worth €11.04² billion at production in 2024, food DOP, IGP and STG €9.64² billion. Food grew 7.7% in the year.

At consumer prices the food side reaches €18.57 billion, nearly double its value at the farm and factory gate. That gap is worth keeping in mind whenever a headline figure doesn't say which of the two it is.

Exports above €12 billion for the first time

Exports of Italian geographical indications reached €12.3³ billion in 2024, up 8.2%, the first year they passed €12 billion. Wine contributed €7.19³ billion and food €5.15³ billion.

So wine carries close to three fifths of export value. Some single names lean even harder on foreign markets: balsamic vinegar of Modena ships nearly all of its output abroad.

183,823 operators, 328 consortia

The system counts 183,823⁵ producers and processors, 328⁵ recognized protection consortia and about 864,000⁵ people at work, all 2024 figures.

A consortium is the body set up to protect one name, and it's often the only published source for that name's production figures. When a page quotes wheels, hams or liters, a consortium is usually where the count comes from.

A 2024 figure read in 2026

These are 2024 numbers, published in 2025 and still the latest edition in our sources as of September 2026. The next report, with 2025 data, will move all of them.

That lag is why single-product pages here often carry 2025 figures while this one doesn't. Don't set a 2025 consortium number against a 2024 sector share without saying so.

What the total doesn't tell you

The €20.7¹ billion is a sector total, and it doesn't rank products or regions. For the count of names behind it, see DOP and IGP in Italy.

For the wine side, see DOP and IGP wines and wine denominations. For the single largest food name, see Parmigiano Reggiano.

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