243Abstract
The role of biodiversity for food quality and healthy
status is well recognized. The question is whether en-
vironmental changes could affect the composition
and bioavailability of bioactive and other food compo-
nents and in what way the production of local and tra-
ditional foods in the various Italian countries can be
improved by applying advanced technologies. The
great progress in technological processes (advanced
technologies, innovative food equipment manufactur-
ers), agricultural practices (food production, trans-
port and processing) and so the changes in lifestyle
led to take attention towards both local foods and
functional foods as principal elements for improving
food product quality and in the meantime supporting
local agrobiodiversity. The main aim of this research
is to identify the many different local and traditional
foods in Italy, their production methods, domestic
cooking and the environmental factors that may af-
fect food quality addressing towards a healthy status.
Our study has been focused on quantification of bioac-
tive molecules (vitamins, polyphenols, carotenoids)
and evaluation of ferric-reducing antioxidant power
(FRAP) of selected foodstuffs, representing Italian
agricultural ecotypes. FRAP value, measured on
Aprica‘s cherries, was 18.55 mmolkg-1 (SD 1.91) and
vitamin C concentration was 0.22 gkg-1 (SD 0.76).
Wild strawberries presented more efficiency in the
total value then literature data 62.85 mmolkg-1 (SD
3.32). In the selected agricultural ecotypes of carrots,
α-carotene and β-carotene reached highest values.
The antioxidant levels and their bioactivity could indi-
cate a better potential for health for the artisan
niches improving their quality and biodiversity.
The conservation and valorization of local/traditional
products could increase the adoption of more sus-
tainable agricultural systems together with the adop-
tion of practices more respective of the environments
and the natural habitats.
Introduction
The great progress in technological processes (ad-
vanced technologies, innovative food equipment
manufacturers), agricultural practices (food pro-
duction, transport and processing) and so the
changes in lifestyle led to take attention towards
both local foods and functional foods as principal el-
ements for improving food product quality and in the
meantime supporting local agrobiodiversity. Qual-
ity should be identified as valorization of traditional
agricultural patrimony, peculiarity of cultivation and
uniqueness of typical products. The high quality
food products have significant nutritive and excel-
lent biological properties and so they have a crucial
role in the productive process and the manufactur-
ing system in the agro-alimentary industry. Nowa-
days, several researches emphasize benefits that
accrue to the small-scale producer and to the con-
sumer, due to the linkage between food quality and
agricultural biodiversity.
The artisan niches production, founded on quality
and agricultural biodiversity and intended for local
and regional use, seems to meet requirements of
consumers about safety and genuineness. The local
small production (niche) represents a system based
on support of agricultural ecotypes cultivated by
techniques based on the historical and cultural tra-
dition of a specific territory and occurring only in their
native place. Through buying locally grown produce,
consumers could give their support to local produc-
ers as well as helping to revitalize rural economies.
Our study represents a step within a research pro-
gramme aiming to improve the valorization of dif-
ferent agricultural ecotypes as artisan niches, in
particular their nutritional and health value. The ge-
ography influences the variation in crop growth and
so the nutrient/micronutrient content varies consid-
erably by species, genotype and ecotype and by the
range of crop management practices employed. The
environmental and agricultural specification could
contribute to further valorization of local agricultural
products by adding market value to a specific basket
of products, and then can be a tool for the promotion
of local products and varieties in the frame of sus-
tainable rural development, with the adoption of
practices more respective of the environments and