Family businesses in Italy are fighting to stay alive as the coronavirus crisis grinds the nation’s economy to a halt.
Italy has been one of the countries hit hardest by the outbreak, recording 13,155 deaths as of Wednesday.
The country was put into a strict three-week lockdown by the Italian Government on 10 March before implementing a shutdown of non-essential businesses on 22 March.
Despite the lockdowns and restrictions, local producers of food and wine in the town of Fara San Martino in Italy’s Abruzzo region are doing everything they can to fight on.
Pasta producer Cocco Pasta, a fourth generation family business renowned for using traditional production methods, has been allowed to continue manufacturing but remains cautious of Italy’s delicate economic situation.
“We have never seen anything like this period before,” Cocco Pasta owner Lorenzo Cocco said.
“We are scared of the virus and don’t know what could happen tomorrow, but we keep working.”
Global export of their pasta has proven to be a saving grace with recent orders from Australia helping to keep production levels up.
“We export to Australia and at the moment we don’t see that changing,” Mr Cocco said.
It is a different story at the nearby Sciarr Vineyard with the family business that produces wine and olive oil suffering as a result of Italy’s hospitality sector being forced to shut down.
Giovanni D'Alesio, who owns the Sciarr Vineyard in Italy's Abruzzo region, has called for more support for business from the Italian Government. Source: Supplied
“Our main customers are restaurants, hotels, bars and catering - so the sales are zero and it is very difficult for us,” owner Giovanni D’Alesio said.
In March, the Italian government announced a $AU45 billion package to support the country's devastated economy.
It includes help for people out of work because of coronavirus, easier access to loans for small and medium-sized companies, and payments for businesses whose revenue is down by more than 25 per cent.
But Mr D’Alesio feels businesses like his have been forgotten by the country's decision makers.
"The situation is very difficult," he said.
"The measures the government want to apply to business is not enough."
The situation could be even worse for Italian tourism with the lockdown expected to cost the country as much as $8 billion in the next three months alone.
Hotelier Donato Di Campli was set to open his five star hotel ‘Supporter’ on the Trabocchi Coast but has put its grand opening on ice for the indefinite future as a result of strict domestic and international travel restrictions.
“We don’t know what our future holds because the season has just begun and we’re already in financial difficulty,” Mr Di Campli said.
“We are not able to understand how the government wants to help in this moment.
“Because at this moment we are all closed, all in lockdown, we can’t do anything.”
Hotelier Donato Di Campli hopes Italy's tourism industry can rebound after the coronavirus pandemic Source: Supplied
Despite all the struggles, Mr D’Alesio still has hope Italy will be able to bounce back and called on the rest of the globe to support their recovery.
“I am an optimist. I hope that in a few months this bad adventure finishes,” he said.
“Come back to visit Italy, to visit our little villages and of course drink Italian wine and eat Italian products all around the world.”
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