PARMALAT: THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS APPROVED THE “ANTI-OPA” DECREE, WHICH POSTPONES MEETINGS TO RENEW OFFICERS TO END JUNE. WILL THIS CONVINCE FERRERO OR ANOTHER FIRM TO FIGHT LACTALIS THAT NOW OWNS 29% OF THE GROUP?

The French group Lactalis now owns 29% of Parmalat, just below the threshold for launching a takeover bid. And while everyone is calling for an Italian consortium to keep the Collecchio group in Italy, the Council of Ministers today passed the “anti-Opa” (anti-takeover) decree, which allows listed companies to postpone budget and corporate officer renewal meetings to end June.

Will it be possible to convince Ferrero or another company to fight the French giant? Various organizations have commented the decree. “They’re closing the barn door after the horse has bolted. But, it’s still better late than never,” said the President of the CIA - Italian Farmers’ Confederation - Giuseppe Politi. “We do not know if this government measure can get Parmalat back into play against the rise of the French group Lactalis. It was, however, necessary to intervene. This is particularly true for the food industry, where we hear less and less Italian spoken. However, believing that the decree will be able to halt the foreign conqueror is pretty far off. We have to watch and wait. Our position on the Parmalat case is not linked to protectionist logic, but rather to the need to protect and enhance Made in Italy food. Our agricultural producers need to feel confident, especially in these increasingly difficult times that are complicating business endeavors.

Unfortunately, in recent years we have witnessed repeated takeovers in this sector, which has had negative effects on agriculture. Nobody has ever made the effort to preserve a system that has a strategic economic and financial role in Italy. There were no appropriate actions taken. Only now, when it is almost too late, do we realize what consequences a non-political action on food is causing. At this point, our hope is that Parmalat, after a difficult recovery, remains in Italian hands. We’ll see if the decree is able to produce positive results. We could give real guarantees to breeders who have contractual relationships with the Collecchio group, especially in this business cycle where livestock enterprises are faced with complex problems, starting with expensive production costs and definitely not profitable prices”. Coopagri, the farmers’ cooperative, agrees. “The Parmalat affair is an industrial project that prioritizes enhancing Italian dairy products and animal breeding and pledges to include domestic raw materials in the Made in Italy brand,” says Coldiretti, Association of Italian Farmers, “because 33% of the total production of food products sold in Italy and exported is made with foreign raw materials, processed and sold under the “Made in Italy” trademark. Sergio Marini, President of Coldiretti, has anticipated this data from the Coldiretti / Eurispes (European Institute of Political, Economic, and Social Studies) report. “The turnover of Made in Italy products made with foreign agricultural products is estimated at 51 billion euros and,” says Coldiretti, ”on the shelves, two out of three hams sold as Italian are produced from pigs raised abroad; three out of four cartons of long shelf life milk are foreign, but this is not indicated on the label; over a third of the Italian pasta is made from wheat not grown in Italy, which consumers are unaware of, and half of the mozzarella production is made from foreign milk and curd.”