Aggregation is fundamental in times of crisis, but it's even more important in case of catastrophic weather events caused by climate change, which often destroy structures endangering the existence of the companies affected. But are there tools that can help companies in need now that mass subsidies are no longer available? We talked about it with the director of a Sicilian PO.
"Unfortunately, the decree implementing the law on the guaranteed income of agricultural entrepreneurs still has to be processed, while the CMO already envisages the co-financing of management costs," explains Luciano Caruso, expert in international agrobusiness.
Luciano Caruso
"The leading fresh produce producers are Spain, Italy, France and Greece, but they're not able to influence EU decision-making processes and most Community resources focus on CAP (single payments), which favours Northern European countries."
Do we cause our own damage?
"At the moment, we participate in the subsidies granted to Eastern European countries and employ more resources than what we get back. Countries like Poland, Romania and Hungary use our resources to invest in greenhouses, so we are co-financing our competition. It's a paradox, a form of self-harm that has no reason to exist. To this, we must add the burden of Italian bureaucracy."
"The consumption crisis is also affecting the sector and is probably caused by the fact that retailers apply excessive mark-ups. We should start displaying double prices, i.e. the price at origin and the sales price. It's the only way to safeguard consumers as well as producers."
For various reasons, some countries don't follow EU regulations, while Italy does.
For various reasons, some countries don't follow EU regulations, while Italy does.
"Italy is a very important nation, despite the treatment it gets on international negotiating tables, as its POs generate a value of €5,560,000,000. The creation of a €56 million fund for POs would be enough to guarantee vital resources to them."