Pasta & Co-products

Pasta and Durum Demand slow

  • Globally, the rate of growth of pasta markets declined from 2.6% per annum in the 1980s to the current 1.6% per annum growth, impacted by dietary or nutritional concerns eg high dietary carbohydrates.
  • Growth market segments are fresh pasta and canned product with pasta has grown at 12% per annum for the last 3 years, dried pasta showed little growth.
  • Special new segments driven by convenience needs of time-poor consumers or health and wellbeing concerns.
  • Globally, durum grain trade has averaged (5 year) 6.8mt at end of 2001 and is expected to continue modest growth of about 1% per annum to 7.6mt by 2012.
  • Durum grain trade reflects slow pasta segment.
  • Increased share of global trade in durum is expected for Australia at the expense of other major exporters including Canada and European Union countries.

Supply of pasta and Durum

  • Australia is a small exporter of durum (less than 2% of global trade) and even less so of pasta (<0.5%).
  • Major export competition in durum grain is from Canada (70% of global trade) and the European Union.
  • Italy is the largest exporter of pasta products and has the largest pasta manufacturing company in Barilla and major importer of Australian durum.
  • Australian pasta exports have doubled from 4kt to 8kt in the last decade; New Zealand the major market.
  • While small compared to Italy, South Australia has largest Pasta manufacturer in Australia and Southern Hemisphere.
  • Other Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) pasta manufacturers have established in South Australia, carving a niche by supplying domestic markets with specialist pasta products or special attribute products including organic pasta and special dietary pastas (eg gluten free).
  • Crucial to South Australian pasta manufacturers is the presence of a consistent supply of quality durum meeting specification.
  • Production issues related to disease and narrow variety adaptation limit durum to only the better cropping environments. Potential exists for more durum supply from South Australian producers in these areas.

Challenges and Opportunities

  • New pasta product innovation is a key to growth but requires significant investment in research and development to ensure success in capturing increased market share in otherwise slow market.
  • Pasta products differentiated from mainstream by offering warrant assurances to the consumer with authenticity and quality assurance systems.
  • Major Australian processor based in SA provides opportunity for significant investment capacity in pasta market intelligence, new product and brand development and innovation.
  • Better-adapted varieties developed by fast tracking breeding and variety commercialisation processes to address variety performance and farmer perception of risk issues in SA.
  • The business focus of major plant breeders on mainstream commodity grains rather than high value niche grains, including durum is a major industry threat.