The Italian Trade Agency would invest around 20 million euros ($22.91 million) to expand into the Chinese market, and food would be an important sector, said Giuseppe Mazzarella, the organization's acting president at Wednesday's Sino-Italian Agrifood Cooperation Forum in Shanghai.

The forum, hosted by the agency, and themed "Sustainability, Food Safety and Innovation as Angular Stones for A Prosperous Future", was aimed to deepen cooperation between the two countries' food sectors.

"China and Italy both pay great attention to cuisine in the world. It is now the perfect time for the Italian food industry to grow in the Chinese market," said Massimiliano Tremiterra, commissioner of the agency's Shanghai office.

"We will mainly promote the Italian 'slow food' movement centered around returning to nature and respecting tradition, enabling vast Chinese consumers to personally appreciate the unique Italian food culture and customs and enjoy Italian life," he added.

Mazzarella added that agency's investment in China will focus on food export, including shipping fresh food directly from Italy to the Chinese market, promoting Italian red wines, and cooperating and communicating with local food companies.

Italy is also an important participant in the inaugural China International Import Expo, which opened Monday and ends Saturday.

Its government agencies, especially the trade agency, cooperate with various industry associations to actively organize enterprises to participate in the expo, striving to allow a large number of representative Italian SMEs to grasp the brand new "China opportunity."

The trade agency's pavilion covers an area of almost 1,000 square meters and features over 70 small and medium-sized companies.