The extent of the damage done by the series of earthquakes that hit the Italian provinces of Modena and Ferrara in Emilia-Romagna from 20 May onwards remains hard to quantify precisely, but it’s definitely a bad situation. Apart from the 26 victims, the destruction of a huge artistic and historical heritage, and the serious damage done to public and private buildings, the food industry itself has also suffered significantly. Coldiretti, with more than 1.5m members, is Italy’s main farmer organisation. It estimated provisionally that the damage would amount to €520m for the entire food production sector.
The area struck by the earthquakes was not only Italy’s leading producer of melons and Abate pears – the provinces that were hit, besides Modena, included those south of Mantova and east of Ferrara – but is also a strong performer at European and international level when it comes to food processing. By mid-June, the vast majority of companies located in the affected areas were closed, either because they had suffered structural damage or because they had not obtained permission to reopen. This prompted Coldiretti to raise concerns about the losses being incurred by the sector.
'Around 8,000 jobs in the agribusiness sector are at risk due to the earthquake, which has damaged farming companies and agro-industrial processing facilities, as well as machinery used for harvesting and irrigation systems which guarantee water to 133,000ha of land used to grow fruit, vegetables, wine grapes, rice and crops,' the organisation’s president Sergio Marini warned, when he spoke to reporters in June.
According to Coldiretti, Emilia-Romagna alone is responsible for almost 10 per cent of Italy’s agricultural output. For many companies, the quake has brought disaster: some cattle farmers have been forced to sell their livestock after stalls were destroyed, while workers have found the work has dried up along with the water, which was due to arrive right now to ensure good fruit growth and sizing.
The quake has also caused problems in terms of the region’s water system, with landslides blocking a number of river channels used to regulate the flow of water to production areas. Irrigation services have been suspended as a result, which means saving water has become even more crucial in order to preserve the fertile lands of Emilia-Romagna’s famous Po Valley. Coldiretti estimates that around 25,000 farmers work in that area, employing a further 12,000 and influencing the livelihoods of thousands more. Pear producers in Emilia-Romagna, a source of high-quality EU-certified varieties, are particularly worried about the lack of water available. The region’s harvest begins in mid-July and Emilia-Romagna normally produces around 80 per cent of the entire national crop.
In the meantime, following the huge shocks experienced on 20 and 29 May and 3 June, as well as more than 1,000 aftershocks in little more than two weeks, the ground continues to shake, changing the structure of the terrain. According to studies carried out by the National Research Council in Naples and the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, the ground in the 50km2 area hit by the quake is now 12cm above the level it was before. For producers, the stakes are now also a lot higher.
No comments yet