History

The origins of the cantuccini date back to at least the 16th century and the name seems to come from ‘canto’, part of a set or from ‘cantellus’, Latin for “piece or slice of bread”, a salted cracker which Roman soldiers ate on their military campaigns. The biscuit as a “sweet” makes its way in the innovative production and consumption of confectionery products firstly in England and in Tuscany and then in the rest of Europe starting from the 14^th century as a consequence of what historians have defined as the “sugar boom”, followed by the widespread cultivation of sugar cane in North Africa and Southern Europe.
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Starting from the second half of the 16th century, the cantuccini made their appearance at the Medici court, even if, as research carried out on the recipes of the time shows, they still did not contain any almonds, being very similar to the already well-known biscuits from Pisa and the related “Genoese biscuit”. The 18th century was characterised by the spreading of the cantuccini in various forms but it was only from the 20th century that production of  cantuccini with almonds started all over Tuscany at large. Today this confectionery specialty is exported all over the world.

Economy

Within the context of the Italian and Tuscan food industry, the cantuccini  boast important results in spite of  being a niche  product.
As regards the overall turnover of the Tuscan industry of baked products and dry biscuits (a turnover of 268 million Euros in 2009, growing in 2010 with over 600 workers), a study made by the consulting company Finanza Futura Srl estimates the industrial turnover of Tuscan cantuccini at 24 mln Euros and 58 mln as the global value of the consumer market, including logistics and distribution. The high inclination towards export is surprising, equal to 37% of the turnover, a sign consolidating that the product is appreciated in Europe and the world. Such an amount seems even more significant if compared to the average export of the Tuscan food industry (22%), of the industry of Italian baked products (23%) and the total Italian food industry (17%).
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The reference market is the EU, which absorbs 29% of the production, but even the extra-EU countries are growing and 8% of the overall turnover goes towards them. Germany continues to be the main importing country in Europe just as the United States are the major trading outlet in the rest of the world followed by Japan. The value of production of this biscuit amounts to over 30 million euro. 22% of this amount is consumed in Tuscany, 41% in the rest of Italy and 37% outside national borders. European Union, United States, Japan and Russia are the most important export destinations.