Truck driver protests in southern Italy over fuel costs have blocked deliveries, causing pasta makers like Rummo to suspend production and leading to shortages of food and petrol.
By Hermes-Vector AI Desk
The production of Italian pasta is under threat as a protest by truck drivers in the south of the country over soaring fuel prices and the cost of living blocks deliveries to factories. The disruption, which began last week with the blocking of roads, motorways and ports in Sicily and the south, has also caused shortages at supermarkets and queues at petrol stations.
Pasta maker Rummo, based in the Campania region, said on Tuesday it had suspended production after running out of ingredients. Cosimo Rummo, the CEO, told daily la Repubblica that almost all major pasta producers in the neighboring region of Puglia are facing similar difficulties. Puglia, together with Campania and Sicily, forms the heartland of Italy’s pasta production.
"This means that most of Italy’s pasta production has ground to a halt, or is close to," Cosimo Rummo said.
La Molisana, another producer based in the Molise region, said it had experienced a significant drop in production and had been forced to draw on its stocks of raw materials such as wheat and semola flour. Italmopa, the Italian lobby of the milling industry, warned last week that a growing number of factories could be forced to stop production, with effects across the whole supply chain if the protests continued.
According to a report in September by the European House-Ambrosetti (TEHA Group), Italy’s pasta supply chain generated €13.5 billion in revenue last year.
Italian agriculture lobby group Confagricoltura warned that producers in Sicily would have to destroy large quantities of perishable products if transportation did not resume. The Centro Agroalimentare Roma (CAR), Italy’s largest wholesale fruit and vegetable market, said roadblocks and higher transport costs were causing shortages of products such as tomatoes, peppers and grapes. This has pushed up prices and increased reliance on imports from countries including Spain and Albania.
Residents in southern Italy have reported difficulties accessing basic goods. Zineb Boutimah, 45, who lives in Locri, a town in the southern province of Reggio Calabria, described the situation at local stores.
"People were trying to grab whatever was left. I had to go to a nearby town, and I also stocked up on flour and the food we consume most," Boutimah said.
Fuel supplies have also been affected. Elena Lombardo, 78, also from Locri, said her local petrol station attendant had urged her to fill up her tank on Monday, warning, "I don’t know whether there will be any petrol tomorrow." On Tuesday, the petrol station was closed.
The Italian government is pledging more aid for road hauliers. After meeting with their representatives on Tuesday, Deputy Infrastructure Minister Edoardo Rixi said a package worth more than €150 million would be made available soon.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s administration is also preparing a security crackdown in response to weekend riots in Milan and other northern cities, which developed on the back of demonstrations against inflation.
Vincenzo Aleccia, president of the Trapani trucking consortium in the western Sicilian port city, told Reuters that he knew the disruption was enormous but added that "it’s a peaceful protest and it’s for the benefit of the people," saying rising prices affected everyone.
The protests highlight the vulnerability of Italy's food supply chain to logistical disruptions. With the pasta industry generating €13.5 billion in revenue, the halt in production poses significant economic risks. The situation also underscores the broader social tensions regarding inflation and the cost of living, as evidenced by the simultaneous riots in northern cities and the government's dual approach of financial aid for hauliers and security measures against unrest.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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