Only a few days have passed since the appeal to the government of agricultural enterprises for the drop in Italian exports of fruit and vegetables that Minister Teresa Bellanova took charge of in the EU. At the Informal Council of Agriculture Ministers in Helsinki, Bellanova has extended the perimeter of the interventions to be adopted within a few weeks. Not only for Italy, evidently, but to give an organic and more collaborative meaning at European level to the problems of individual countries. Italy, however, must be forgiven for the attacks and controversies of the previous government during the Northern League campaign.
Agriculture can also play a key role towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
The ability to combine development, sustainability, quality exports inside and outside the Union will be the testing ground of the new Commission. And if it is true that Italy has regained its prestige, we will soon have to see the effects on the ceiling of "Made in Italy" exports which are worth over 40 billion euros. Are reforms needed? They should be done in a climate of harmony, it was said in Helsinki, envisaging subsidiarity and flexibility, because European agriculture differs from region to region. The reforms are also streamlined and functional so as not to burden agricultural businesses and the supply chain. In times of customs duties and trade wars often neglecting the main elements of sustainability, this indication will also have to be verified in practice.
Minister Bellanova said what he wants to do for Italy, in a non-catastrophic vision, but bearing in mind the effects of the climate crisis on Italian agriculture. “Tackling the ongoing climate crisis together is essential and Italy wants to be in the front row with an agricultural model that is economically, socially and environmentally sustainable”. Let's start from the soils where we work and produce. They must be protected and taken care of, because they can be one of the fundamental keys to reversing the trend. In perspective, then, a modest deregulation, so that each State has the possibility, within the ambit of its own Strategic Plan, to define a list that can represent the best possible solution to increase the percentage of carbon in soils. Example of intensive and protected agriculture.
Business can no longer neglect environmentally friendly production processes and crops. The drop in exports reported a few days ago by Italian farms was also linked to the quality of everything that goes on the markets. In all Regions agricultural enterprises have invested heavily in organic farming in recent years, in the recruitment of young people, in the organization of services and expect long-term commercial returns. Compared to the controversies in the EU of the previous government, which proved to be useless and harmful, the policies of the Union will, on the other hand, have to strongly consider the quality aspects in trade agreements with third countries. Bellanova insisted a lot on these points, marking a clear change in the relationship between partners, until yesterday addressed in a thousand ways by virtue of a false delegation to the Northern Producers' League. Instead, there is a high challenge, from an environmental and economic point of view that can be won. The new government will dialogue with the agricultural world and will have to think about how to support it. But it will also be important that the European Union, in respect of reciprocity, dictates conditions and demands guarantees of controls, certifications, eco-labels, for products imported from individual countries. Two demanding work tables for a breakthrough.
