HA! Brace for impact! Talk about being in a hot seat you do NOT want to even be near. This is 100% bonafide messing with hallowed ground!
Plenty of problems in Italy…inefficient government and use of public funds? Bah! ..a reality since time immemorial. Poorly laid out and organized cities? They’re 2000 years old, can hardly tear them down. Little forward thinking in terms of development and growth? What are you going to do… difficult enough to address past and present problems, much less future ones. Italian’s tend to have pretty thick skin about many things…
But mess with one of Italian families’ most fundamental relationships…. pasta?! MA COME SI PERMETTONO?! (How dare they?!) Mamma mia!
This is allegedly what 90% of Italy’s pasta producers have done, according to the country’s anti-trust authority. It has just slapped all the producers with a cumulative E.12.5 million fine for collusion in fixing the price of pasta for an almost 40% increase in two years!
The companies allegedly started the scheme in late 2006, riding the wave of increased commodity prices a bit too aggressively. When retail prices failed to drop along with the cost of wheat recently, red-lights apparently went off and an investigation was begun.
Sit tight! On par with loosing the European Cup in calcio (soccer) to the French at the last minute of overtime a few years ago, the shakeout on this one should prove to be one interesting collective ride for the Italian national psyche!
-- Contributed by GB (see bio), Editor, Italian Notebook.
February 27th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
Between this and the olive oil scandal, where can we turn?? Looking forward to updates…. Great Note!
February 27th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
I love your notebook; but I didn’t like this ‘corruption’ note on pasta. I know that all that exists in ‘our’ country, but we’re reading NOTEBOOK for other reasons. Keep it light, interesting, and non-political. Thanks for your great site! Best, Claudia
February 27th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
It only is logical, some things are less important,some things you can control. So you address that which can be addressed successfully. Pasta is ‘most’ important and something can be done about it’s cost. allora
jojo
February 28th, 2009 at 12:02 am
Does anyone think this scandal will end any differently than the calcio scandal of a few years ago? Lots of media and Berlesconi (sp) and then many pardons.
February 28th, 2009 at 1:31 am
I do not know and cannot find out what the word “mannagia” means..this is a family bet..thanks
February 28th, 2009 at 1:44 am
Mannaggia = darn it.
February 28th, 2009 at 10:58 am
Phil is absolutely right! Looked it up and according the Garzanti dictionary it is a derivation of the expression in a southern dialect (doesn’t say which) “Male n’aggia” (abbia male, in Italian), literally “Have badness”, as in “May bad things come [to this/it/you/etc]“… “Damn it” in a nutshell, or “Darn it” as Phil more politely put it.
March 2nd, 2009 at 3:11 am
Thank you to both Phil and hebegb for a definition of “Mannaggia”..the bet ended in a draw..but at least we are somewhat sure what the term means.
March 2nd, 2009 at 3:20 am
Prego, signorina. E stato un piacere.
March 4th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
quoted:
I love your notebook; but I didn’t like this ‘corruption’ note on pasta. I know that all that exists in ‘our’ country, but we’re reading NOTEBOOK for other reasons. Keep it light, interesting, and non-political. Thanks for your great site! Best, Claudia
I totally agree with Claudia!