‘Young people are returning to agriculture’ is a cliché that, for years, has been used to describe a non-existent phenomenon. In fact, the Italian countryside is becoming increasingly depopulated, with agricultural businesses in decline and even Bulgarian and Romanian labourers fleeing for better working conditions or returning home.
According to the 2020 ISTAT census, the number of Italian farms has decreased by 20% compared to ten years ago. The data speaks for itself: family farming, the backbone of national rural rhetoric, is disappearing. Only the most organised businesses remain in the sector, often focusing on intensive production and industrial processes, where foreign labour has become indispensable.
The role of foreign labour
Around 30% of workers in the agricultural sector today are of foreign origin. This figure is significantly higher in companies with a turnover of more than €1 million, where over 45% of the workforce is from abroad. The correlation between size and dependence on foreign labour is also evident in terms of size — measured in hectares cultivated.
However, there has been a haemorrhage of EU workers. Between 2018 and 2022, the number of Romanians employed in agriculture fell by 34%. During this period, the number of Bulgarians fell by 33%, while Poles decreased by as much as 49%. This gap has largely been filled by asylum seekers, who often enter the agricultural sector through informal channels or via recruitment in ‘reception centres’, where they are exposed to degrading working conditions.
Contracts, illegal hiring and ethnic labour barriers
The type of contract varies considerably depending on the country of origin. There is almost an ethnic segmentation of farm labourers. Romanians and Bulgarians, as EU citizens, have easier access to permanent contracts. Moroccans enjoy relative stability, partly thanks to bilateral cooperation. However, many others enter the agricultural labour market through more or less disguised forms of exploitation.
Pakistani and Nigerian workers, for example, are frequently employed illegally or in informal conditions. Situations vary among Indian migrants, especially in Lombardy’s livestock sector. In Lazio, however, reports of illegal hiring practices are increasing. Moldovan women are employed not only in the fields, but also in agritourism and family care, while Albanians remain among the most integrated into regular seasonal work.
The failure of Italian recruitment
In recent years, and particularly during the period of the pandemic, various institutional initiatives and trade associations have attempted to create public platforms to match supply and demand. However, the results have been disappointing. In a sector where margins are tightening and global competition is intensifying, decent working conditions are often a luxury. Attempts to attract Italian labour when foreign labour was unavailable due to lockdown and border closures failed completely.
A structural dependency
The picture that emerges is not that of a temporary emergency, but of structural dependency. Italian agriculture, particularly its most competitive sector, relies on a precarious balance of underpaid labour, forced mobility, and limited alternatives. Added to this is the self-exploitation of farmers, particularly in micro-family businesses, who struggle daily just to survive economically.
It is important to dispel the clichés about ‘genuine’ Italian agriculture, where small farmers are ‘forced to exploit’ due to oppression. Presenting the facts and the reality is the first step in addressing the problem. Without collective awareness and structural intervention, the only outcome will be slow desertification.
