Agricultural diesel aid saved the agricultural year
Farmers satisfied with measure on agricultural fuel relief. Timely decision in view of spring sowing that requires preparatory work with agricultural machinery
Key points
The tax credit on agricultural diesel saves spring sowing and prevents price increases on agri-food products. Italian farmers are breathing a sigh of relief for the measure launched on Friday 3 April by the Council of Ministers that provides a tax credit of 30 million euro to cover the purchase of fuel for the month of March at the rate of 20%.
Lollobrigida: concrete support for the primary sector
'A concrete support for the primary sector in Italy,' commented the Minister of Agriculture, Francesco Lollobrigida. 'Our farmers will be able to cushion the increases in the cost of fuel needed to produce. This is a measure that has an impact both on agricultural businesses and on citizens who will be able to continue to choose the quality of Italian products without further increases in production costs
Prandini: diesel prices increased from 0.85 to 1.45 euro per litre
The agricultural organisations are also very satisfied. "The extension of the tax credit adopted for fishing to agricultural enterprises," commented Coldiretti President Ettore Prandini, "is important to save the spring sowing and the agricultural year. As a result of the war, agricultural diesel prices have risen from around EUR 0.85 per litre to EUR 1.45, with price increases exceeding those of ordinary diesel. The high diesel prices combined with the flare-up in fertiliser prices (urea has reached 835 euro per tonne compared to 585 euro before the war in Iran) threatened to bring the agricultural year to a standstill.
Fuel accounts for up to 20% of production costs
Great satisfaction was also expressed by Confagricoltura, which recalled how 'diesel alone in some production sectors (horticulture, mushroom growing, animal husbandry, fish farming, and for some processes such as fodder processing and irrigation) accounts for between 15 and 20 per cent of total production costs'.
Additional efforts and structural interventions are needed
For Cia-Agricoltori Italiani, the measure adopted by the government represents "a first step," they emphasise, "that requires additional efforts, at least for the months of April and May, when activities in the fields intensify and the demand for energy inputs increases. The increase in other production costs should not be overlooked, as in the case of fertilisers, with price rises of up to 60 per cent for urea and nitrogen due to tensions in the Middle East. We trust," added Cia, "that the government will continue along this path with broader structural interventions, transforming temporary relief into a lasting strategy for Italian agriculture and, in particular, for the sectors most in crisis, such as the cereal and livestock sectors.
