Piedmont asks for the label of origin of the rice
That of the origin of the products is a theme that emerged also at the festival. Today i
The Piedmont Regional Council unanimously approved one motion to introduce mandatory origin labeling for rice. The motion was also proposed by the center-left majority on a proposal from the councilor for agriculture Giorgio Ferrero. The commissioner attacked the rice industry, «labeling is a path strongly opposed by industry, which speculates on a small market overproduction, reducing prices unjustifiably, because these prices are not reduced to consumption. But there are few actors in the rice market and they could even sign up. The industry buys it where it wants, imports have increased and the consumer buys an Italian brand believing he is buying Italian rice, while it is not always so with security ». According to the Regional Councilor for Agriculture, the return of duties through the safeguard clause is a correct response to the emergency, which has been requested and supported, but the mandatory labeling, strongly desired by the Region and requested by the government from the EU with a decree is a fundamental tool for the relaunch of the sector. The motion was also voted by the right. "The nefarious logics of liberalization of agricultural products have done so - declares Gian Luca Vignale, group leader in the Regional Council of the National Movement for Sovereignty - that today millions of tons of Asian rice are imported into Italy from agribusiness multinationals which are then labeled with brands which lead the consumer to think about buying an Italian product. The only real and concrete solution is to introduce duties that drastically limit imports from other countries and provide for mandatory labeling with respect to the origin of the cultivation of rice products to give the consumer certainty about the real origin ". The 5 Star Movement has voted in favor but has seen rejected the proposal to unify the Italian 5 stock exchanges (Vercelli, Novara, Mortana, Pavia and Milan) «We could have played ahead of the political will of the Ministry of Agriculture to obtain the unification of rice bags - declared Gianpaolo Andrissi, M5S Regional councilor - In addition, measures must also be taken against the increasing spread of weed resistance, reported by several farmers, due to the cultivation of the Clearfield rice fields for several years now . A patented variety and genetically resistant to pesticides. As for GMOs, these rice plants that could not be cultivated for more than two years on the same field are transferring resistance to herbicides to the plants present in rice fields. This requires farmers to have more treatments with different products and higher costs at a time when rice is sold at 25 euros per quintal ».
- At the Piedmont Regional Council he is the shoulder Alberto Cirio, strength Italy, member of the Agriculture Committee of the EU Parliament, «I proposed a similar motion to the Lombard Regional Assembly, because Piedmont and Lombardy constitute more than 90% of the Italian cultivated rice area. It will come approved in Milan in June. In parallel we will collect the resolutions of the municipal councils that will decide to join the mobilization. In autumn, then, on the occasion of the next trade agreement planned this time with Vietnam, we will bring all the Italian rice mayors to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, to ask the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Phil Hogan, to identify useful and immediate solutions to protection of one of our highest quality productions ".
