Deputy Transport Minister Edoardo Rixi said €480 million was available for haulers on Oct. 20, as Rai News reported freight disruption and the Centro Agroalimentare Roma observatory reported reduced produce supplies linked to protests.
Rixi said the funding covers applications received through Aug. 30. The government would add support for September and October, he said, with a tax credit planned for 2027. Rixi said contributions were starting Oct. 20; Transport Minister Matteo Salvini told ANSA that first payments would begin Oct. 21.
Rai News reported that trucks blocked operations at the Interporto Sud Europa terminal in Caserta province. The Centro Agroalimentare Roma observatory said fewer shipments from southern Italy reduced Rome’s supplies of tomatoes, peppers, eggplants and grapes. Wholesale prices rose, and imports increased to help cover the shortfall, the observatory said. Those effects leave produce suppliers and wholesalers contending with reduced supply and higher prices, while eligible haulers are the intended recipients of the support.
Rising diesel costs and the timing of government relief have fueled the stoppages. On Oct. 16, UNATRAS said companies had received none of the credit relief it said had been allocated, EconoTimes reported.
The Comitato Trasporto Siciliano ended its stoppage after talks with Salvini, ANSA reported. Fedralog’s Calabria representative said drivers would continue through Oct. 27, Rai News reported. In Campania, the end date remained unsettled: delegate Vincenzo Parisi said haulers were discussing whether to stop, ANSA reported. Protesters in Puglia planned to lift some blockades, the agency reported.
The action follows a previous round of truck protests and food shortages in southern Italy. Salvini said officials would meet haulers Oct. 27 to review the start of payments, ANSA reported.
