Italy is the first country to have introduced rules on integrated pest management
integrated
in agriculture. After developing a voluntary standard, the adoption of this method was prescribed on every farm in the country, starting from 1.1.14. Five years later, however, the data do not add up. Theuse of pesticides in the Bel Paese remains significant.
Integrated production in agriculture, history and principles
As early as 1976 theto IOBC (International Organization for Biological and Integrated Control) introdusse conceptsi of‘ integrated agricultural production‘ e ‘integrated pest management‘. L‘s international organization, starting in 1993, began publishing Guidelines general and specific (i.e., referring to specific crops). In view of four
objectives
fundamentals:
– s
ostenibility of the environment,
– q
uality of productions,
– b
animal welfare
,
– e
tics
s
ocial.
The system designed by IOBC thus charted the way forward, compared with conventional agriculture, by focusing on the principles to be followed in integrated production. Holistic approach system, knowledge sharing to ensure the stability of agricultural systems (and thus security of supply, c.d. food security), as well as the rcost reduction of production and memberso-environmental. The a
pproach
integrated therefore aspires to improve soil fertility by balancing their nutrient inputs, promoting biodiversity and production quality, as well as animal welfare.
Integrated production has findto expression regulatory in the norbut tecnica Uni 11233:2009 and at National Quality System Integrated Production (SQNPI). As well as, most recently, in the private certification scheme GlobalGap. On closer inspection, organic farming also is an integrated production system in terms of objectives, principles and operating model, in which, the rule imposes the closed loop in terms of external inputs. In an organic production system that has reached maturity, the farm should practically no longer use external means of production. Only in cases of demonstrated need may it use, in limited numbers, and present in the current positive list in Annexes I and II of Reg. EC 889/2008.
Il National Quality System of Integrated Production defines such method as ‘An agribusiness production system that uses all means of production and defense of agricultural production from adversity, aimed at minimizing the use of synthetic chemicals and rationalizing fertilization, while respecting ecological, economic and toxicological principles‘ (Law 3.2.11 no. 4).
Pesticide use in Italy, the data
From theory to facts, pesticide use in Italy is well above the European average. È
needed
a
‘
reversal of
course. Il report ISPRA 2018 atl monitoring dehe quality of water – performed by analysis of 17.275 samples taken on 4,683 points of monitoring – reveals the presence by pesticides in 67% of the withdrawal of surface water and at 33,5% Of those underground. Contamination by pesticides affects an average of 5 substances per sample, up to a maximum of 55 substances.
Land sales of plant protection products Italy, in 2015, have reached the 136,055 tons (whose 63.322 ton of pesticides). That is to say, at least 4.6 kg Of chemistry per hectare (ha). Considerably above average Veneto
,
with more than 10 kg/ha
. La
Province of Trento, Campania and Emilia-Romagna exceed 8 kg/ha.
, the
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
stands at
7.6 kg/ha.
Italy ranks fourth in Europe (after Malta, the Netherlands and Belgium) for pesticide use-expressed as the amount of substances per unit of agricultural land (UAA) – which is About 2.4 times higher than the European average(!).
-
Country
Kg PA
SAU
Media
Malta
1.588.840
108.800
14,60
Netherlands
107.202.510
18.475.700
5,80
Belgium
63.303.670
13.079.000
4,84
Italy
55.840.851
12.098.890
4,62
Spain
714.541.560
233.002.200
3,07
Portugal
101.246.330
36.415.900
2,78
Germany
437.514.240
166.995.800
2,62
France
666.594.930
277.394.300
2,40
Greece
105.641.360
48.567.800
2,18
Slovenia
9.173.580
4.857.600
1,89
Czech Republic
61.885.830
34.914.700
1,77
Hungary
77.668.920
46.565.200
1,67
Denmark
42.049.700
26.193.400
1,61
Poland
221.917.860
144.098.700
1,54
Finland
32.738.220
22.824.000
1,43
Croatia
20.064.450
15.712.000
1,28
Austria
30.974.360
27.268.900
1,14
Slovakia
19.965.950
19.016.100
1,05
United Kingdom
165.907.050
173.269.900
0,96
Lithuania
25.131.200
28.612.500
0,88
Romania
105.856.510
130.558.500
0,81
Norway
7.597.370
9.962.700
0,76
Sweden
21.770.120
30.359.200
0,72
Latvia
12.504.820
18.777.200
0,67
Luxembourg
850.360
1.310.400
0,65
Estonia
5.673.680
9.575.100
0,59
Ireland
29.152.700
49.594.500
0,59
Bulgaria
11.962.700
46.509.400
0,26
Total
3.156.319.671
1.646.118.390
1,92
Amount of pesticides distributed in 2013 by individual EU country (kg/ha). Source: Enviromental European Agency 12.12.2016
What solutions
The
consumAtor is the master
and therefore the
engine of change
. The choice of organic food, where available at reasonable prices, provides an excellent stimulus for crop conversion. The discrepancy between the supreme principles of integrated production and the worrying data on pesticide use in Italy, after all, can only be addressed by building sustainable supply chains, such as ‘ChainForFood‘ And strict disciplinary requirements.
The consumer on the other hand must abandonsre the theorem of the ‘convenience at all costs‘. Rather, it must learn to measure convenience not only in terms of purchase price savings, but also in terms of the actual value of the products, understood as the set of benefits they provide to individuals, the environment and the community. The consumer must come involved, informed and educated to responsibility Of their own choices. For eating is undoubtedly a political act, with significant impact on everything around us.
Donato Ferrucci and Dario Dongo
Agronomist, master in food law. He deals with certifications and quality systems in the agri-food chain. He collaborates with institutions and universities and is a member of the editorial board of rivistadiagraria.org.
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
