Untold Italy · Friday, September 18, 2026
Contrary to popular belief, Cinque Terre's historical economy was driven by agriculture, not fishing. While seafood like mussels and anchovies are traditional, the region's true local products are wine, lemons, olive oil, and honey, cultivated on terraced landscapes.
“This is completely false. This is not true. It's not true historically also, because people of the Cinque Terre were mainly peasants. They lived with agriculture. So they used to enjoy the seafood like mussels, octopus, something that they can grab. From the rocks. So they were not fishermen.”
“So winemaking is still an historical, traditional activity. And today they are trying to renew and keep on this activity. So they are opening new wineries. They are rescuing old vineyards. So there is an intense work of making wine again. And so that is one of the most really local products that you can find in Cinque Terre.”
“And in addition to wines, another local product are lemons. You probably know lemons from Monterosso. There are some lemon orchards in the area, especially around Monterosso, which is flatter.”