PETpla.net Insider 09 / 2014

EDITOUR REPORT 12 PET planet insider Vol. 15 No. 09/14 www.petpla.net If we look at Italy from the point of view of drinks pack- aging overall, it is not surprising to find that the dominant proportion of PET bottles, amounting to approx. 75%, is to be found in the non-alcoholic drinks sector. It is only when it comes to juices with a proportion of fruit in excess of 40% that the brick packaging tends to dominate. Now, however, in 2014, the first aseptic filling line for PET bottles is being put into operation. Italy as a market for mineral water With mineral water consumption amounting to 11.4 bn litres and a per capita consumption of 190l per year, the mineral water market is the pillar of the Italian beverages market. Although the mineral water market has been satu- rated for years, the market remains an important economic factor in Italy. Mineral water prices are very low by com- parison to other European countries and so, for reasons of cost, imports are virtually invisible in the market. As a result competition tends to be local and almost exclusively related to price. Hence the trend goes towards private labels for discounters because the premium brands are losing share. For instance, within the bottling plants (numbering in excess of 140), there are more than 250 dif- ferent brands. Although this development has to do with the economic situation of the country, the purchasing mindset of the Italians is also a factor. The Italians buy approx. 70% of their drinks in supermarkets along with their groceries. 2/3rds of the drinks consumed are still mineral water, with a geographical distribution from northern/central Italy to southern Italy of 75/25%. When it comes to packaging there is a preponderance of 80% PET bottles incorporat- ing bottle sizes with contents ranging from 0.25 to 2l. As regards the distribution of bottle sizes, we find that the 1.0/1.5/2l sizes account for more than 75% with the smaller content bottles (0.25/0.33/0.5l) bringing up the rear at around 25%. The most significant companies on the Italian water market in terms of size are:  San Pellegrino  San Benedetto  Norda+Gaudianello  Rocchetta/Uliveto  Ferrarelle  Spumodor  Lete These eight businesses represent some 70% of the market for bottled water in Italy. Interviews on the Italian Tour In the interests of doing justice to the water market in Italy we focused on this segment. In the mineral water bot- tlers sector we visited the following firms:  Acqua Nepi in Nepi (VT)  Ferrarelle in Riado (CE)  Fonti di Posina in Posina (Vi)  Fonti di Pineta in Clusone (Bg)  San Pellegrino in San Giorgo in Bosco (PD)  Tavina in Salo (Bs) We were able to conduct interviews with the following: PET machine manufacturers  CFT in Parma. Manufacturers of PET bottling machines for special applications  Sacmi in Imola (Bo). Manufacturers of preform and clo- sure cap machines.The closure cap machines based on the compression process.  Siad in Bergamo. Manufacturers of air compressors for PET stretch blow moulding machines with the Vito brand name.  Sipa in Vittorio Veneto (TV). Manufacturers of PET pre- forms and stretch blow moulding machines and bottling lines. PET preform and bottle converters  Alpla in Tortona (AL). Manufacturers of PET preforms and bottles  Garda Plast in Polpenazze (BS). Manufacturers of PET preforms  Plasco in Anangni. Manufacturers of PET preforms  Retal in San Dona Piove (Venice). Manufacturers of PET preforms  Sicon in Giammoro (ME) on Sicily. Manufacturers of PET preforms. Manufacturers of additives Repi in Lonate Ceppino (VA). Manufacturers of addi- tives for PET tints and barriers. Recycling Recycling policy tends to vary with country, and Italy is no exception. Costs and individual national regulations may mean that the price of rPET is higher than new material. We shall be interviewing Messrs. Cier in Castellato (TE) with a view to probing such matters more deeply.