Sid Lee has been named AOR for the Italian Trade Commission in Canada, working on the new “Made in Italy” campaign. The agency won the business in January following a review that included four agencies.

The ITC is a government organization tasked with promoting Italian products and companies abroad. Developed with the Italian Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, the “Made in Italy” campaign is the ITC’s largest ever and will promote authentic food and wine from the country and educate consumers on the difference from imitators.

“Every time consumers buy a food product that sounds Italian but is not, they are effectively being misled,” said Pasquale Bova, Italian Trade Commissioner to Canada, in a press release promoting his delegation’s visit to Canada. “Italian-sounding imitations are not the same as certified Made in Italy products, because they are not subject to the same strict standards of production which determine the characteristics that make original Made in Italy products world-renowned.”

According to the ITC, Canada is one of the top ten countries in the world for Italian food and beverage exports, with Italy being the fourth largest supplier of imported foods to Canada. Despite this, Canadians buy $3.6 billion in “Italian-sounding” imitation products every year. Worldwide, the market for Italian-sounding products is estimated at over $82 billion, more than twice the size of Italy’s entire food export market.

Sid Lee’s work on the integrated campaign will focus on creative development, along with branding, social media, digital and content. The consumer portion of the campaign will be launched later this month and run nationwide through the rest of the year.

In early March, Sid Lee was also named AOR for Club Med’s business in North America, focusing on the resort brand’s strategic creative direction and the “Club Med Creative” partnership with Cirque du Soleil, a client and minority owner of the agency.

With files from Harmeet Singh

Image courtesy of Shutterstock