Extraordinary intervention
Over €150 million disbursed throughout 2025 to nearly 10 farms in the provinces of Modena and Reggio Emilia, with over 38 total payments across CAP, rural development, support for the wine sector, disaster compensation, and other measures to boost the competitiveness of the agri-food sector. These resources are complemented by new measures to strengthen livestock biosecurity, with a €2,6 million call for proposals to combat African swine fever, and a special €2 million initiative in 2026 to support businesses in purchasing wildlife prevention equipment, prioritizing wolf predation. These were the main topics discussed yesterday in Modena and Reggio Emilia between the regional councilor for Agriculture, Alessio Mammi, agricultural associations, businesses, and local authorities. Also present were the Special Commissioner for PSA, Giovanni Filippini, and, via video link, the Regional Councilor for Health Policies, Massimo Fabi.
The goals
The goal is to assess the needs of agri-food businesses and the progress of the actions undertaken by the Region. "Days like these in each province are essential for us to engage directly with agricultural businesses, associations, and local administrators and to jointly assess the effectiveness of the measures we have implemented," says Councilor Mammi. "The Emilia-Romagna Region supports the agri-food sector with concrete investments, support tools, and ongoing dialogue with local communities. This is because we want to provide timely responses to businesses' needs and strengthen competitiveness, sustainability, and the ability to address current and future challenges."
PSA fight
Since the virus's onset in Italy, the Emilia-Romagna Region has implemented a comprehensive intervention plan, combining economic, hunting, and land-use control measures. Four calls for proposals totaling €11,1 million were launched, supporting over 200 companies in implementing biosecurity initiatives. A new tender worth €2,6 million is coming soon. On the hunting front, wild boar hunting has been extended from three to four months. Furthermore, in the areas designated by Special Commissioner Filippini, which include both the Modena and Reggio Emilia areas, the opening of the hunting season has been brought forward to September 1st and extended until February 28th. Another important result was obtaining the exemptions requested from the commissioner for depopulation activities to increase the number of operators on duty, even in restricted areas. Furthermore, a network of Territorial Operational Groups (GOT) has been established from Piacenza to Bologna to ensure constant and effective presence in the area and a regional GOT. Additional resources, €100 per province for Modena and Reggio, have been allocated to implementing wild boar reduction activities, active surveillance, and trapping management. Furthermore, starting this year, resources for control plans for both diggers and wild boars will increase, almost doubling from €1 million to €1,8 million. Of these funds, nearly 180 thousand euros will go to the province of Reggio and approximately 210 thousand to that of Modena. “Since the first cases of ASF were recorded in our country, we have worked to strengthen biosecurity measures on farms, supporting concrete investments and prevention tools in which we will continue to invest, increasing resources if necessary,” underlines Councilor Mammi. We are pleased that Commissioner Filippini, in yesterday's meetings, as well as the EU in recent months, recognized our region's commitment and efforts to contain the virus and reduce the presence of wild boars. We face a complex battle to protect the pork industry, which is worth nearly €5 billion a year. This must be a priority for everyone, as it represents an economic and social asset that belongs not only to Emilia-Romagna, but to the entire country and Europe. Due to the import restrictions adopted by some non-European markets, PSA represents a serious threat to our entire agri-food system, which could also have repercussions on the exports of other products." "I thank Commissioner Giovanni Filippini for his presence here today and for the great coordination work carried out together with the commissioner's office and regional institutions, which has also been appreciated at European level and which could soon lead to the reopening of some restricted areas," the councilor continued. The goal must be to eradicate the virus, and to achieve this, the Region, in collaboration with breeders, veterinary services, agricultural associations, and all other stakeholders, will continue to invest all necessary resources, knowing that only through teamwork will we be able to contain and overcome this emergency.
Management of the presence of the wolf
During the two meetings, the Emilia-Romagna Region's approach to managing wolf presence in the region was also illustrated. This approach, which seeks to strike a balance between safety, respect for biodiversity, and the protection of productive activities, is based on four pillars: prevention, compensation, information and communication, and institutional coordination. From a strictly operational standpoint, every year the prevention requests addressed to this species have all been funded, representing almost a quarter of the 350 thousand euro in funding from the annual call for proposals for the prevention of damage caused by wild fauna. These resources were complemented in 2026 by a special call for proposals providing €2 million to support the purchase of protective equipment such as fixed or mobile fences, guard dogs, deterrent systems, and other technologies to protect animals at pasture or in night shelters. Alongside prevention efforts, the compensation system for affected businesses has also been strengthened, receiving approximately €90 annually. This has been supported by the approval in June 2025 of a new regulation that also allows compensation for indirect damages. The Region has also increased coordination at the provincial level between Parks, Municipalities, Provincial Police, and Forestry Carabinieri, promoting the establishment of permanent working groups in each Province to monitor the presence of wolves and identify shared solutions to local critical issues. To complete the picture, free training actions are offered to companies, who are offered technical assistance to identify the most suitable defence systems for their specific company needs. “The increase in the wolf's range is now a fact both at the regional and national level, and represents a deeply felt issue,” explains Mammi. Since 2014, the Emilia-Romagna Region has implemented all the measures permitted by national legislation, launching a strategy to limit its impact on production activities and our communities. For the future, we have proposed to the prefects the establishment of periodic provincial coordination tables to involve all interested parties in managing emerging issues and evaluate the actions to be implemented on a case-by-case basis." "It is necessary to adapt the regulatory tools we have available at the national level to address a situation that has changed significantly compared to the past," the councilor continued. For this reason, together with the other Regions, we have asked the Government to act in two directions. The first is the adaptation to the new conditions of the National Wolf Management Plan, which dates back to 2002. This operation would allow for a consistent approach at the national level and create the basis for a national monitoring plan for the species. Second, we call for greater consistency between existing regulations. Although the species' downgrading was implemented through the 'mountain law', Law 157 still defines the wolf as a particularly protected species. This is a regulatory conflict that does not allow clear action for administrators and also creates legal conflicts."
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