The regional aid, together with the tax credit introduced by the Government, will allow the cost of agricultural diesel to be brought back to pre-war levels for the period from March 1st to September 30th. This was announced by the regional agriculture department of Calabria, with councilor Gianluca Gallo illustrating the effects of the decision of the council chaired by Roberto Occhiuto to allocate 5 million euros to the agricultural sector, to stem the consequences of the surge in prices following the outbreak of the conflict between the USA and Iran. According to what the councilor explained, the combination of the two tools will allow Calabrian agricultural companies to recover the difference compared to the pre-war cost. The refund will be made directly to the current accounts of the companies involved, through Arcea. «The measure – continues Gallo – meets the requests formulated over time by both trade organizations and farmers who, spontaneously or through their associations, are in recent days animating the active presidia throughout the regional territory. We are perfectly aware of what else needs to be done, considering the gravity of the situation on a national and international level, and we are already working towards this.”
The request for rural development funds
The councilor also refers to an initiative shared with three other regions to identify further resources to support companies. «Together with the Puglia, Campania and Basilicata Regions we have requested to be able to proceed with the use of funds from the Rural Development Complement 23-27, to be allocated, as already in the Covid years, to the refreshment of agricultural companies to cope, also through this instrument, with the dizzying increase in the prices of energy raw materials. We trust in a prompt and favorable response from the EU.”
Imports and guaranteed minimum price
On a structural level, Gallo announces his commitment, together with trade organizations and the agricultural world, to prevent imports from third countries not subject to the same constraints and obligations imposed on European producers from resulting in unfair competition. «We will propose the convening of a consultation table at national level with large-scale retail trade», adds the councilor, recalling the need to introduce «a guaranteed minimum price that adequately takes production costs into account and allows our farmers to work with greater certainty and serenity, to protect an essential sector for Calabria and the whole of Italy».