The Italian agricultural model, no longer subordinated to environmental ideology, is the objective that Francesco Lollobrigida intends to pursue in Europe too. Especially now that there is the possibility of changing course thanks to the vote on 8 and 9 June. The Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty takes stock of what has been done to date and the results still to be achieved.
Minister, the Agriculture bill that you approved in the Council of Ministers puts an end to the wild installation of ground-mounted photovoltaics. Why was it urgent and what changes?
«We are convinced that land is used to produce and not to speculate and that energy production must be supported, compatibly with agricultural production. Precisely for this reason the Meloni Government wanted to clearly regulate the installation of photovoltaic panels on the ground and safeguard the areas intended for agri-food production. The wild installation of ground-mounted photovoltaics is over. From today, if you want to produce energy on agricultural land, you can only do it with the innovative suspended Agrisolare that allows cultivation. Obviously the ban on ground-mounted photovoltaic panels will exclusively concern productive land, excluding for example quarries, mines, areas under concession to the State Railways and airports, in the motorway area and inside industrial plants. I can assure you that the Pnrr funds will not be questioned in any way.”
Regulations have also been introduced against swine fever and to contain wildlife. What do they consist of and, above all, should we be worried?
«With the rules that we have included in the Agriculture Decree we wanted to strengthen the actions to be implemented to further combat the spread of ASF. With the rules approved in the Council of Ministers, the army is more clearly mobilized in this counter campaign and the Civil Protection, if the conditions exist, will be able to intervene in support of the actions that the Commissioner deems appropriate to foresee. At the same time, we continue to work in Europe to encourage the adoption of legislation that clearly differentiates the management of wildlife from measures aimed at farm safety. Therefore, focus on the biosecurity of the plants, preventing the presence of an infected animal from closing exports or forcing the slaughter of thousands of pigs.”
How did you intervene financially to support the sector?
«In recent months we have intervened on several occasions to support the pig sector. Among the Masaf interventions I remember the distribution of 15 million euros among the Regions involved for biosecurity interventions and a further 25 million euros in favor of pig farms damaged by the restrictive measures. Furthermore, 3.5 million euros were allocated to the commissioner structure to strengthen its capacity for extraordinary intervention. In the legislative decree approved in the CDM we invested a further 20 million euros to guarantee the health of the animals and the protection of the production system. (5 million euros for 2024 and 15 million euros for 2025). African Swine Fever is an example that confirms the need for man’s presence as a bio regulator. The Meloni Government is on the front line to contain a phenomenon that could have negative consequences for the Italian pig sector and put the export of one of our excellent products at risk.”
Do you think that after these interventions we will see protests like those of the tractors of recent months again?
«Farmers only asked to work and create wealth. Their exasperation, which exploded in particularly heated forms in Northern Europe, led even those less sensitive to the topic to have to deal with this issue and, on the proposal of the Italian Government, to bring the discussion to the European Council. Our relationship with the agricultural world has been constant. No Italian farmers’ association has joined the violent mobilizations seen in other nations. Those who exploited farmers’ initiatives had very marginal results. Today we have a Europe that is starting to treat agriculture with the respect it is due. The CAP, as it was written under the pressure of socialist Commissioner Frans Timmermans, had made environmental sustainability prevail over economic and social sustainability, leading to unachievable choices. Today, finally, we are moving towards the principle of productivity and putting the guarantee of income for farmers back at the centre.”
There was talk of a heated discussion with colleague Pichetto Fratin. It is true? And if so, what were the differences?
«The one with Gilberto Pichetto Fratin is a controversy that created the press. Proof of this is the fact that yesterday the Minister of the Environment and Energy Security came to the press conference with me. The Meloni Government is cohesive, there is a homogeneity of vision to do the best for our nation. It is normal for different ministries to have different perspectives and there is a need to bring them together so that they are as clear as possible.”
As in recent summers the drought problem has resurfaced, how are you intervening?
«In the Agriculture Decree we also looked in strategic terms at the events linked to drought, a phenomenon that is no longer emergency but cyclical which has been affecting Italy for over twenty years. With the Drought decree we intervened on some crucial issues, with the aim of guaranteeing the effectiveness of water systems, increasing reservoir capacity and reducing water losses from the network. The establishment of the control room represented another fundamental step forward for the management and supervision of irrigation interventions. With the rules included in the Agriculture Decree, we intend to further strengthen the infrastructure and improve the effectiveness of last year’s Drought Decree, with the definition by the Extraordinary Commissioner of a plan of urgent interventions to be submitted to the Control Room for approval and to be approved by September 30th of this year.”
We will vote in a month, what do you think are the three priorities to address in the next European legislature?
«The Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has clarified what are the guidelines that Fratelli d’Italia intends to bring to Europe, starting from issues ranging from immigration, to energy, from foreign policy to the family. Europe needs to resume its path by adopting the intelligent approach adopted by Italy in recent years. As far as I am concerned, we want an agriculture that is less subordinated to the environment or, rather, to environmentalist ideology. Because where there is agricultural activity there is a profound respect for the environment and protection of the territory. Brussels has begun to understand that agriculture is not the enemy of the environment. It will be necessary to review the concept of environmental sustainability completely disconnected from economic sustainability. We cannot sacrifice entire production sectors to achieve the green transition. Times and methods need to be reviewed.”
Are you worried about what happened in Liguria and the arrest of Giovanni Toti?
«I’m worried about any arrest, God forbid. We have an investigation, which began four years ago, which ends twenty days after the vote. We await the outcome of the judgment of the judiciary, in which we have the utmost confidence, hoping, as is normal, that the people involved can demonstrate their non-involvement in the facts.”
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2024-05-13 18:39:45