QUALITALY_130

August /September 202 2 I MAGAZINE AT PAGE 1 The country needs answers! We are inside a perfect storm. The conflict unleashed by Russia has contributed to the slowdown of the economic recovery in an already complex scenario after 2 years of pandemic, record high inflation (never so high in 30 years), stagnation, low incomes, rising interest rates, and so on in a Wagnerian crescendo that seems to have no end. It’s true. The summer season has filled a lot of holes and helped many people, but on the horizon is the issue of bills, which has become a priority for all entrepreneurs in the sector. A problem that ties in is with the issue of credit, not least because in such cases one does not know exactly what will happen to our customers in the coming months. Of course, we all hope that the labour trend will follow that of the past summer season, but there is a ghost lurking in the market, called instability. Unfortunately, it is difficult to think that increased ingredient costs and operating expenses can be passed on to the end customer alone. The only possible solution is to review one’s organisational processes in search of greater efficiency and effectiveness and, if necessary, to rethink one’s business model. Always remember that in times of great change it is the market that dictates the rules and not the organisation. So how do we deal with the economic situation? One idea is to analyse point by point the expenditure items of one’s own establishment, trying, where possible, to optimise expenditure. Some examples? Against high energy prices watch out for obsolescence of inefficient and energy- intensive equipment. Tax incentives can make it easier for restaurateurs to face the renewal of installed equipment and save on their energy bills. We discuss this in the feature on page 16. And then there is the question of ingredients, which are increasingly expensive and, often, especially when fresh, difficult to manage because they are easily perishable. So why not opt for frozen food, which by its very nature allows long-term storage? And this characteristic opens up the possibility of stocking up and thus avoiding the price increases that rising inflation promises to generate (feature on page 20). There are many ideas and tips in this issue, as well as a special guest, Alberto Toè, Executive Chef of Horto (page 24), who takes us to ‘an open-air meadow’. Enjoy your read! By Lorenzo Morelli AT PAGE 3 Panta Rei Reflecting on what has been happening in re- cent years, not only in our industry but glob- ally, the expression “Panta Rei” came to mind. A scholastic reminiscence of years gone by, of a concept as relevant as ever, providing me with a different insight into our times. “Everything flows”, argued the Greek philos- opher, Heraclitus, so that flux is what governs the world. Reality is subject to the law of change. Without change nothing could exist. No situation will ever be repeated identically. Reality is in eternal flux like a river, which on- ly apparently remains the same, but in fact is constantly renewing and transforming itself, while remaining a river. Everything changes, and yet, in change, it remains. In the hyperactive society we live in, everything happens and changes at the speed of light. Global crises, which we are experienc- ing more and more frequently, impose continu- ous change. Flexibility becomes a necessity. AUG/SEPT 2022 MAGAZINE Traduzione a cura di Christopher Farley