AGP Executive Report

Farm Logistics: Transport strikes have brought Italian grape exports to a standstill, while the agriculture minister has condemned trucker protests that halt supplies. EU Farm Funding: Giorgia Meloni and six Italian regions are opposing cuts to the Common Agricultural Policy in the bloc’s next long-term budget, as EU leaders remain deadlocked over spending. New Crops: Research suggests southern Italy’s climate may now support coffee cultivation, hinting at new opportunities as growing conditions shift.

EU Farm Funding: Leaders left the 2028–34 budget unresolved, with Italy among 17 countries seeking to protect agricultural subsidies and regional funds as Germany pushes for deeper cuts. Farm Protests: Soaring diesel prices have brought farmers, fishers and truckers onto roads across southern Italy, disrupting transport; a national demonstration is planned in Rome for Oct. 27. Grape Exports: Transport strikes have brought Italian grape exports to a standstill, adding pressure on growers and exporters. Aquaculture: Pordenone’s AquaFarm returns in 2027 for its 10th anniversary, bringing together the blue-food sector.

Farm Costs: Fuel-price increases have driven farmers, fishers and truckers to block roads across southern Italy. A national demonstration is planned in Rome on Oct. 27 as pressure mounts on the government to respond. EU Farm Funding: EU leaders left their summit without a deal on the 2028–34 budget. Italy is among countries seeking to protect farm subsidies and regional funds, leaving future agricultural support uncertain. Aquaculture: AquaFarm returns to Pordenone for its tenth edition in 2027 as aquatic foods gain importance; FAO says aquaculture overtook capture fisheries as the leading source of aquatic animal production in 2024. Fruit Exports: Transport strikes have brought Italian grape exports to a standstill, disrupting shipments. New Crops: Southern Italy is now considered suitable for coffee cultivation, pointing to changing prospects for the country’s growers.

Apple Cooperatives: Melinda returned a record €220 million to member growers after a 410,000-tonne harvest, despite rising costs and export delays. Grape Exports: Transport strikes have brought Italian grape shipments to a standstill, disrupting growers’ access to overseas markets. EU Farm Funding: EU leaders ended their summit without a budget deal, with Italy among countries pushing to protect agricultural subsidies and regional funds. Agrifood Innovation: FAO’s World Food Forum in Rome put farmer-focused innovation and resilient food systems at the center of its agenda. Climate & Crops: Coffee is now growing successfully in Sicily, as warmer conditions open new possibilities for southern Italian agriculture.

CAP Funding: EU leaders left the next long-term budget unresolved, with talks set to resume on November 26. Giorgia Meloni has warned Italy will reject a deal that cuts farm funding; six Italian regions have also opposed reductions, and a delay could disrupt payments to farmers from 2028. Wine Exports: Roero DOCG producers are taking wines and Italian deli meats to a US wine conference in Florida, with tastings and pairing events aimed at introducing the region to American buyers. Agrivoltaics: Italy’s solar capacity is forecast to nearly double to 82.3 GW by 2030. Support schemes, including agrivoltaics and Agrisolare, are helping drive renewable projects, many in southern Italy and Sicily. Climate and Crops: Warmer conditions are enabling coffee cultivation in Sicily after earlier attempts failed, while an Italian rice farmer is using biodiversity to help his crops withstand extreme heat.

Protected Italian Foods: Capocollo di Martina Franca has won EU PGI status, bringing Italy’s registered PDO and PGI agri-food products to 332 and protecting a traditional cured meat from Puglia. CAP Budget Fight: EU leaders are divided over the bloc’s next long-term budget, with agriculture funding caught in the dispute. Giorgia Meloni and six Italian regions oppose cuts to the Common Agricultural Policy. Farm Competitiveness: A new study says EU crop output grew just 0.1% annually from 2011 to 2023, trailing major agricultural rivals and raising concerns about technology access and climate resilience. Climate Adaptation: Coffee is now growing in Sicily after decades of failed attempts, as warmer conditions open new possibilities for Italian farmers. A rice farmer in northern Italy is also using biodiversity to help his farm withstand extreme heat.

Farmland Protection: Lombardy plans to tighten its data-centre rules after receiving more than 60 project applications. Officials want developments steered to disused industrial sites and away from farmland, with stronger water and renewable-energy requirements. CAP Funding: Italy’s fight over the EU’s 2028–34 budget is intensifying. Giorgia Meloni says Rome will reject a deal that cuts farm support, fisheries or regional funding, while six Italian regions have also called against reductions. Climate Resilience: An Italian rice farmer is turning to biodiversity to help crops withstand extreme heat, highlighting how growers are adapting to a hotter climate. Food Safety: Salmonella-linked cherry tomatoes from Italy have been reported at restaurants in Croatia, putting food-supply monitoring in focus.

CAP Funding: Giorgia Meloni says Italy will reject an EU budget deal that cuts support for the Common Agricultural Policy, fisheries or cohesion, even if that delays an agreement. Six Italian regions have also joined calls against proposed cuts. Crop Conservation: Italy’s Council for Agricultural Research and Economics made its first deposit to Norway’s Svalbard seed vault, safeguarding historic wheat and rice varieties. Farm Innovation: A trial is testing solar panels alongside broccoli cultivation, exploring how agrivoltaics could combine power generation with food production. Climate Adaptation: Coffee plants are now thriving in Sicily after earlier attempts failed, as warmer conditions open the door to a crop once considered unsuitable for the island. Rice Farming: An Italian rice farmer is using biodiversity to help his fields withstand heat.

Food Processing: European group CA Animation agreed to buy a 90% stake in Piacenza cured-meats maker Capitelli, valuing the business at €36 million; the deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. EU Farm Funding: Giorgia Meloni says Italy will not accept a poor long-term EU budget deal just to meet a deadline, as negotiations put future agricultural funding among the stakes. Trade and Investment: Italy is eyeing wider Mercosur trade as exports under the EU deal rise 21%; in Rome, Uganda’s prime minister also urged Italian investors to develop coffee processing and other agro-industries. Climate and Crops: A rice farmer in northern Italy is using biodiversity to cope with extreme heat, while warmer conditions are enabling coffee cultivation in Sicily after decades of failed attempts.

Renewable Energy: A new biomethane plant in Grottole will turn agricultural waste into 45 GWh of gas annually, enough to supply more than 3,000 homes and avoid about 9,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Climate Adaptation: A rice farmer in northern Italy is using biodiversity to help his fields cope with extreme heat, while coffee cultivation is gaining a foothold in Sicily as warmer conditions reshape what can grow. EU Farm Funding: Ireland’s proposed 2028–34 budget would cut agricultural and regional funding by 3%, less than reductions to other programmes, but farmers and regional groups are still protesting the wider spending plan. Trade: Italy’s exports to Mercosur have risen 21% under the EU trade deal, as the country looks to expand its agricultural and food markets. Food Security: At the World Food Forum in Rome, FAO chief economist Maximo Torero warned that rising prices—not current shortages—are the main food-security risk, citing fertilizer and grain-route disruptions and El Niño concerns.

Food Safety: Cherry tomatoes linked to a salmonella outbreak in Italy were distributed to five catering businesses in Croatia. Italian prosecutors are investigating; contaminated irrigation water is one possible source. Climate-Smart Farming: An Italian rice farmer is using biodiversity to cope with extreme heat, while coffee plants are now thriving in Sicily after decades of failed attempts—a shift scientists link to a warming climate. Italy in Africa: At the World Food Forum in Rome, Giorgia Meloni presented the Mattei Plan as a way to strengthen African food security through farm modernization, local production and climate resilience. Agrifood Business: Italy’s Euricom agreed to buy German rice and pulse processor Müller’s Mühle, expanding its reach into legume-based ingredients. Italian exports to Mercosur also rose 21% in May, the trade deal’s first month of provisional application. EU Farm Funding: Farmers are among those protesting a proposed EU budget that would be smaller than the Commission’s plan, amid concerns over cuts to agricultural support.

Climate Adaptation: An Italian rice farmer is using biodiversity to cope with extreme heat, while Sicily’s Morettino family is harvesting small quantities of Arabica outdoors as warmer winters make cultivation possible. The coffee trial also highlights a growing concern: water supplies may become harder to secure. Food and Water Security: FAO’s World Food Forum in Rome is calling for more investment in agricultural innovation, technology and young people. A Rome Water Dialogue on Oct. 14 will focus on water governance and fair, sustainable allocation. EU Farm Funding: Ireland’s proposed €141 billion cut to the bloc’s 2028–34 budget has drawn criticism, with farmers among those protesting as negotiations continue.

Rice and Resilience: Northern Italian farmer Alice Cerutti is restoring wetlands and woodland on her Vercelli rice farm, while growing historic varieties such as Carnaroli Classico and Arborio Classico. The crops yield less but are more resilient to extreme weather, and biodiversity has increased across the farm. EU Farm Funding: Ireland’s proposed 8% cut to the 2028–34 EU budget would trim funding for agriculture and cohesion by 3% against the Commission’s plan. Italy is among the countries pushing to protect these funds, as farmers and EU lawmakers protest the proposed reductions.

FAO Forum: Delegations gathered in Rome for the World Food Forum, where Venezuela’s president said her country would share agricultural production and food-sovereignty experience. Farm Policy: Italian farm lobby leader Ettore Prandini urged the EU to give agriculture more budget flexibility, warning that an inadequate long-term plan could jeopardize the sector. Land Pressure: Data-centre expansion around Milan is taking up farmland and adding to competition for land and energy. Sector Links: Italy and Pakistan pledged closer cooperation on a sustainable, competitive olive sector, while Italy and Cuba announced work to promote sustainable pineapple and avocado production. Innovation: An FAO exhibition at Rome’s Circo Massimo showcased seed-to-food innovation.

EU Farm Funding: Ireland’s proposed 2028–34 budget shields agriculture and cohesion from the deepest cuts, but still trims the combined allocation by 3%, to €914bn. Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida called protecting the Common Agricultural Policy a good start, but said Italy remains unsatisfied. Land and Energy: A report on agrivoltaics explores whether solar power and farming can share land, including in Sicily; meanwhile, data centres expanding around Milan are reported to be consuming farmland and energy. Olive Sector: Pakistan and Italy are strengthening cooperation to build a more sustainable and competitive olive sector.

EU Farm Budget: Ireland’s proposed 2028–34 EU budget is 8% below the Commission’s plan. Agriculture, fisheries and regional funding would face a 3% cut, less than other areas, but Italy’s agriculture minister Francesco Lollobrigida said protecting CAP funding is only a start. Olive Sector: Pakistan and Italy are reinforcing cooperation to build a more sustainable, competitive olive sector. Climate & Crops: Hot, dry weather is making truffles harder to find across Europe, with growers warning of lower harvests and rising prices. Land Pressure: Milan’s expanding data-centre development is drawing attention to the loss of farmland and competition for energy.