Verona 4 April 2023. One is the Italian sailing ship renowned by all navies as "the most beautiful ship in the world", the other is the international reference event for Italian wine. Amerigo Vespucci and Vinitaly will set sail together in July to promote the excellence of Italian wines for a world tour stopping off in the main cities of all continents.
The Minister of Defence, Guido Crosetto, announced the project this morning while visiting the 55th Vinitaly, running until tomorrow at Veronafiere.
"Companies have asked us to help take the image of Italy abroad," said the Minister, "and now the Government will even achieve this through the Ministry of Defence. As of 1 July and for two years, Amerigo Vespucci will be engaged in a training campaign sailing around the world, with stops in every continent where we will also present the best of Made in Italy. Veronafiere and Vinitaly will join this project and accompany us on the Italian Navy's most famous training ship, while helping to promote Italian excellence abroad."
Vinitaly is currently hosting more than 4,000 wine companies in Verona, representing a value chain that in Italy posts turnover of more than 31 billion euros. Wine is the first active item in Italy's balance of trade and in 2022 totalled almost 8 billion euros in exports.
"It is a great honour for Vinitaly," said the President of Veronafiere, Federico Bricolo, "to go on board the Vespucci and contribute with our trade fair brand to promote wine as a genuine flagship product of Italy. This new initiative strengthens our development plan targeting a permanent promotional platform coordinated with all institutional partners and capable of attracting not only market investments in Italian products but also boosting incoming visitors to Italy and its territories."