Lonato to Ban Transgenic Agriculture, Promotes Eco-Friendly Farming
Transgenic agriculture? A firm no also comes from Lonato. According to plans by Paolo Marcoli, the assessor who, besides managing the delicate local trade sector (overseeing large-scale distribution), must also deal with the agricultural community, this ban will become a concrete commitment.
Anyway, this will be the first major issue addressed by the Agriculture Commission, which has been established just recently. It is presided over by the same Paolo Marcoli, who is also in charge of productive activities, and will be joined by Marco Boschetti, representing the city council, and Innocenzo Menapace, a farmer from Esenta, tasked with representing Coldiretti.
Additionally, Agostino Lana, owner of an agricultural business in Madonna della Scoperta and a representative of the Italian Confederation of Farmers, will participate, along with Pierino Baresi, who farms in Bettola and represents the Provincial Union of Farmers. As we see, there is no discrimination against union organizations.
The role of agriculture in Lonato
“We will soon get down to work,” assures the assessor, “to map out the agricultural landscape of Lonato. The individual issues, expectations of various businesses, complaints, and requests. In short, a dialogue that I want to reopen with a sector that still represents a significant part of the local economy.”
In fact, Lonato has always been a borderland enriched by multiple realities, with a lively and multifaceted economy. Here, the steelworks coexist with greenhouses, a mega nightclub with quarries, a model farm with artisan settlements. And agriculture still retains a certain role.
Fifty years ago, 55 percent of the active population was employed in agriculture; 24 percent worked in industry and construction, and 10 percent in commerce. Now, these figures have completely changed, and agriculture accounts for about 15 percent of the workforce.
Goals of quality and environmental protection
The municipal administration aims for quality agriculture, and above all “clean,” respectful of ecological balances and with minimal use of chemicals. “We want to become,” Marcoli concludes, “an anti-transgenic municipality, just as other cities across Italy are already adopting specific policies in this direction.”
Of course, the final decision will lie with the city council, which will need to evaluate the entire project. It should also be noted that Lonato could take on a pioneering role, already hosting the headquarters of the Lombard Association for Organic and Biodynamic Farming, “La Buona Terra.”
Just a month ago, the Minister of Agriculture and Forest Policies, Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, during the inauguration of the association’s premises, expressed the growing interest the State has in producers of organic products and, more generally, in environmentally friendly production techniques.
Roberto Darra
