«We made the first public complaint in 2015, when the number of wild boars in Calabria was still limited. From then on the growth was exponential and they increased tenfold.” And they arrived almost everywhere, even in residential areas and on the beaches. And, of course, on farms. Franco Aceto, president of Coldiretti Calabria, explains to us that no cultivation in Calabria in recent years has been safe. From the fruit and vegetable sector to the cereal sector. Not to mention farms, with the spread of new diseases. Impossible to estimate the damage.
«The point is that no one makes a complaint. Me first: every year, in the last five or six, I have suffered between fifteen or twenty damages in my company. Once for livestock activities, another for fodder crops, yet another for kiwis or vineyards. Even to the farmhouses with the devastation of the gardens – explains Aceto – Why don’t we report or report little? Because years pass before compensation, which is always limited to 30 or 40 percent of the damage suffered. And in the meantime you had to call an expert, have a report made at your expense, forward the complaint… In short, it’s not worth it.” And if it is therefore not possible to make an estimate of the damage, the regional data on the presence of wild boars in Calabria cannot be considered reliable either – says Aceto. «For the Region there are 300 thousand specimens, but it is calculated on complaints and reports, which, as mentioned, are few. Because if you have an accident with a wild boar you file a report, also for the insurance, but how many of those who, for example, have spotted wild boars crossing the road, have reported it? We have at least a million specimens in the region: it is a social problem that must be faced and resolved in a radical way.”
Coldiretti will reiterate this tomorrow, with the mobilization that will lead it to demonstrate in front of the regional headquarters in Cosenza. Calabria is – together with Lombardy, because the problem, let’s remember, concerns the whole country – the first region in which Coldiretti takes to the streets this year to draw attention to the wild boar emergency. But how did we arrive at such a large ungulate population? «The reintroduction of the species in Italy has gotten out of hand. Until a few years ago, wild boars in Calabria were disappearing. And, rightly, action was taken. But the controls didn’t work – says Aceto – And today we also find ourselves faced with the disappearance of the native breed and the presence of specimens much more similar to the pig, which give birth twice a year».
Meanwhile, on the horizon, a solution for Calabrian farmers (and not only them) is beginning to be glimpsed: two days after the announcement of the mobilization, the Calabrian regional council approved the resolution committing itself to adopting the Extraordinary Plan for the containment of wildlife within 90 days. «A very important step forward – comments Aceto – also because it incorporates our proposals». Already in 2020 Coldiretti had presented a possible intervention plan for the containment of wild boars to the then acting president Nino Spirlì. «It could not be implemented, however, because it was in conflict with law 157 of ’92, which protected wildlife. With the 2023 Budget Law, however, a change was introduced to the national law which allows the Regions to adopt extraordinary plans for the containment of wild boars”. Coldiretti discussed it with the regional government in May and his requests were accepted with the resolution a few days ago. «We have proposed the collaboration of the armed forces, the possibility that farmers intervene in their own funds, naturally if they have a gun license and the necessary hunting permit, the support of the Municipalities, which can leverage traffic police and carabinieri, the ‘establishment of a special body of hunting guards with the possibility of intervening – Aceto explains further – With Tuesday’s mobilization (tomorrow, ed.) we will now ask to speed up: Calabria was one of the first regions to implement, perhaps we can get to plan even before the expected 90 days. The farmers, I assure you, are exhausted. I receive reports and outbursts every day from our members, who are increasingly pushed to abandon crops, starting with fruit and vegetables.”
The wild boar emergency, moreover, adds to the hardships that have hit the sector in recent seasons, not least climate change. «Agriculture is going through its most difficult period since the Second World War – says the president of Coldiretti Calabria – First the two years of pandemic, then, in 2022, the speculation on energy costs, the year after the increase in mortgage rates. In four and a half years, the producers have only accumulated debts. If what you grow or raise doesn’t bring you any product because it is raided by wild boars, you risk – concludes Aceto – having to close the company”.
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