Coldiretti

Coldiretti (National Confederation of Direct Farmers) is the largest representative and assistance organization for Italian agriculture.

Founded by the Christian Democrat politician Paolo Bonomi on 30 October 1944 as a trade union for small agricultural entrepreneurs, Coldiretti progressively established itself as the leading agricultural organization in Italy. Through initiatives in support of agriculture and a widespread territorial structure, it consolidated a central role in representing farmers at both national and local levels.

In the 1950s, the organization, inspired by a similar initiative in the United States, created the Italian Club 3P for young farmers, modeled on the 4-H clubs founded in 1902. The project aimed to promote technical training, civic education, and entrepreneurial skills among rural youth.

Toward the end of the twentieth century, Coldiretti expanded its representation from individual farms to cooperative enterprises, from agriculture to the fisheries sector, and from traditional farming to new direct-marketing models. It promoted the “Campagna Amica” farmers’ markets and launched the first organized national chain of direct sales by Italian farmers under the project “Filiera agricola tutta italiana” (All-Italian Agricultural Supply Chain).

Coldiretti is regarded as a lobby organization with stable influence on Italian government policies, particularly in areas such as agricultural taxation, production and distribution regulations, and food labeling, including geographical indication schemes.^[1][2]

Coldiretti brings together approximately 1.6 million farmers and represents a majority share of enterprises operating in Italian agriculture. Around 70% of the agricultural businesses registered with the chambers of commerce among representative organizations are affiliated with Coldiretti.

It is also the leading agricultural employers’ organization in Italy in terms of the number of enterprises hiring labor. Its territorial network includes regional federations, 97 interprovincial and provincial federations, 724 local offices, and 5,668 municipal sections.

The Coldiretti system includes UE.COOP, representing cooperatives, and the Fondazione Campagna Amica, which brings together nearly 20,000 outlets including farms, markets, shops, restaurants, urban gardens, and agritourism enterprises associated with Terranostra.

• Ettore Prandini [it]
• Giampietro Comolli

Official website