Organic Foods

Italy is the leading European country for organic farming. Some 50,000 farms or estates cultivate nearly 1 million hectares (2,470,000 acres) of land without the use of chemicals and using only organic fertilizers.

Organic farming, which began in the 1960s as an isolated phenomenon, has spread to become a major factor in Italian agriculture. Today there are eight regulatory bodies behind the production of organic produce, which includes fruits and vegetables, olives and olive oil, grapes and wine, grains and animal fodder.

Significantly, the six southern regions lead the nation in organic farming, accounting for about 75 percent of Italy's organic produce. The warm, sunny southern climates are obviously well suited to natural produce. The islands of Sardinia and Sicily together account for about half of the land devoted to organic farming.

Although organic farms accounted for 6.5 percent of Italy's total of cultivated land in 1999, estimates are that growth in the sector will boom in coming years as demand for natural produce continues to mount in Italy and abroad. In 1999 more than half of Italy's organic produce was exported.