It wasn't a long time ago that finding here in the US some specific Italian delicacies was pretty much impossible. They either had to be hidden in our suitcases on our way back from the Bel Paese, or they could rarely be found at some specialized little bottegas that imported them or even smuggled them in. Things have drastically changed.

The United States represent the largest worldwide market with about 300 million consumers. “In 2014 the export of Italian food products to the US increased by 6.2% compared to 2013, confirming the US a third of our target market for excellent food and, conversely, placing our country in 8th place of the ranking of the main supplier countries.”(www.italianfood.net)

Italy is first in the export of pasta, olive oil, wine and cheese into the USA. But there  are so many products that consumers cannot live without anymore. Great part of the success of Italian products is due to the flourishing of new online services that are changing the way food is sourced, accessed, consumed and socially shared. Among the plethora of online services, Kickstarter just launched a new crowd-funding campaign for Italynthebox.

Italynthebox is a member-only subscription service that directly connects local, artisanal food producers in Italy to US consumers. The start-up has been founded by Alessio Rossi, an online marketing veteran and Giovanni Colavita, owner and CEO of Colavita USA, one of the major importers of extra virgin olive oil and Italian food products in the US.

The two entrepreneurs aim at dramatically increase the variety of fine Italian food in the US, reaching out directly to the consumer. “I believe authentic, genuine, hand-made food has the power to induce positive and memorable effects on everyone,” Rossi has said, “I also believe in connections between people who make food and those who eat it.”

“Instead of asking you to explore each Italian village for the most palatable delicacies, we are bringing them to you with two simple subscriptions,” the two write on their Kickstarter page. People can chose between 1 box every 4 weeks for $22/month and 1 box every two weeks for $40/month.

Each box is different and it contains six hand-picked products selected by their team in Italy. There are about two servings of each product in the box. Products are chosen in order to narrate a story linked to regions, seasonality and festivity. The products are accompanied by content explaining their origins and the stories behind their producers.

“Artisanal, locally produced food represents the best of Italian excellence.,” the two explain, “Knowledge is orally transmitted through generations of skilled craftsmen, recipes can date back centuries and attention to quality is unparalleled. Often, ingredients come in small quantities and production only allows for small batches resulting in the large majority of these incredible products being unknown to the US audience. Still, they make some of the best memories of any traveler to Italy.”

Examples of what you can find in the box include, but not only: bread products, honey, cheese, chocolate, cookies, cold cuts, sauces, dips, cakes and much more. Just one bite to will make you feel you are on a gastronomic expedition in Italy.

The crowd-funding campaign just launched, you can find it on >>> [2]