More than €20 million. This is the amount the government and the Region are ready to allocate to support the Pecorino Romano PDO sector, hit hard by tariffs imposed by the United States. Three measures were agreed upon today by Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida, along with the Consortium for the Protection of Pecorino Romano and the Regions of Sardinia and Lazio: the call for applications for the needy, the regional solidarity fund, and the SFIRS revolving fund.
The total amount will be finalized in detail in the coming days, following the minister's meetings with the non-profit sector, and will be officially announced next week, when the Consortium's president, Gianni Maoddi, returns to Masaf. The main measure concerns the call for tenders for the needy, funded with national and regional resources: it provides for the withdrawal of significant quantities of Pecorino Romano PDO, to be donated to associations, charities, and soup kitchens throughout Italy. This initiative has a dual objective: to help families in need and to reduce the stocks of Sardinian companies , currently penalized by the decline in exports to the United States, the product's historic reference market.
"This measure represents an immediate and concrete response to a crisis that threatens to severely impact our businesses ," explains Gianni Maoddi . "We're transforming a problem into an act of solidarity and social responsibility, ensuring that our cheese becomes a tool of assistance for those in need, without losing its symbolic value."
In addition to the call for applications for the needy, the package includes the release—through a national law—of the regional solidarity fund, which has been held up by the Sardinian Department of Agriculture, as well as the possibility of accessing the SFIRS revolving fund to support businesses. €500,000 in regional funds dedicated to product promotion are also planned.
(Unioneonline/vf)
