RIVE exhibition, the FederUnacoma partnership

The agreement between the Pordenone exhibition agency and the agricultural machinery manufacturers' federation was presented in Rome for three biennial editions starting from January 2021. The agreement strengthens the exhibition dedicated to the wine production sector, making Pordenone a centre of excellence for the sector at a national and international level

The new hub of viticulture is born in Pordenone. The premises were already there, but now, with the new formal agreement between Pordenone Fiere and Federunacoma, what was a prospect becomes a reality: making Pordenone a platform of excellence at the national and international level for one of the leading sectors of today’s economy.

The Pordenone wine production hub is the result of a favourable environment, starting from the nursery tradition that sees Friuli as Italy’s leading producer of cuttings (90% of national production comes from this district), i.e. very young vine plants, already grafted and ready to be planted. Furthermore, Pordenone is part of an area, the Northeast, which alone produces over a quarter of Italian wine. In 2018, with its 2,048,000 hectolitres, Friuli Venezia Giulia covered about 4% of the national total (with a high quality and added value production), while Veneto covered 26.6% with 12,100,000 hectolitres produced. Structured and continuously developing, the Pordenone area represents well the whole production chain “from field to cellar” which involves a broad category of professional operators that includes nurserymen, winegrowers, cooperative wineries, production consortia, oenologists, winemakers and distributors. This is the environment where RIVE, the International review of viticulture and oenology, has been growing since 2017 with increasing success and popularity. It represents an opportunity for meetings and discussions between operators in the wine sector and for presenting to companies in the sector all the technical and technological innovations for viticulture, grape processing, winemaking and wine marketing. Organized in collaboration with the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, Assoenologi, Consorzio Doc Fvg and Ersa (Regional Agency for Rural Development), for the third edition, to be held in January 2021, Pordenone Fiere has decided to secure an important partnership with FederUnacoma, the National Federation of Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers. An alliance of technological value - as illustrated during the presentation press conference held in Rome at the headquarters of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region last June 13 - shared by Renato Pujatti, President of Pordenone Fiere, by Alessandro Malavolti, President of FederUnacoma, and by Massimo Goldoni, CEO of FederUnacoma surl, with an ambitious goal: to make Pordenone, through RIVE, an international reference point for the wine sector. This partnership is made particularly promising by Pordenone’s experience in exhibitions, with a trade fair system that brings over 300,000 visitors and over 2,700 exhibitors to the city each year, with over 30 local events and seven international events every year, and by FederUnacoma’s high skills in the agricultural machinery sector, a crucial element for the evolution of the wine sector. FederUnacoma surl, moreover, “speaks the same language” as Pordenone Fiere, being the official organizer of Eima International, the biennial international exhibition of agricultural machinery that takes place in Bologna every two years, and of other promotional and exhibition events.

Renato Pujatti, president of Pordenone Fiere, explains: “RIVE is a project of Pordenone Fiere, born in 2017, as the only Italian event dedicated to the entire viticulture and oenology production chain. From the beginning, our desire was to produce an event that was not only commercial, but that turned the spotlight on viticulture 4.0 and on the oenology of the future, with a focus on the potential of applied genetic research, topics at the heart of important technical meetings. After two editions, RIVE has already become an event of reference for operators in the production chain. This important collaboration with Federunacoma, wanted and sought by both parties, will allow RIVE to enter the European circuit of trade shows, increasing its international attractiveness and supporting Made in Italy products”.

“The RIVE event is dedicated to quality viticulture - states the President of FederUnacoma, Alessandro Malavolti - an expression of a territory in which nurseries, agriculture, the wine industry, tourism and gastronomic culture are integrated very effectively, creating economies with high added value. In the wine production chain, a fundamental role is also played by mechanization, with its wide range of vehicles, equipment and technologies 4.0 that allow an optimal management of the productive factors and a sustainable use of natural resources. Quality viticulture requires quality mechanization, and for this reason the Italian federation of agricultural machinery manufacturers considers the collaboration with the Pordenone Exhibition to be useful and strategic”.

“The trade fair sector is one of the most dynamic in terms of economics and marketing - states Massimo Goldoni, CEO of FederUnacoma surl - but also one of the most difficult and selective. At a national and European level, exhibitions are successful if they address a specific segment of the public offering a range of specialized products. In the case of RIVE, its specialized aspect is evident, and this constitutes the lever to attract an audience of professional and foreign operators. These are the factors that determine the weight of an event and give it real prospects for development”.

“The contribution of high technological, scientific and economic value that RIVE excellently exhibits - notes Stefano Zannier, regional councillor for agri-food, forestry and fishing resources of the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia - is an example of how viticulture is a sector in constant development, and of how innovation plays a decisive role. It is no coincidence that this exhibition is presented in the cradle of international viticulture, where the added value of the final product derives both from careful research and experimentation on the nursery product and from the necessary innovation that our producers invest in”.