We will proceed to report the Lactalis group for unfair practices to the Central Inspectorate for the protection of quality and fraud repression of agri-food products (ICQRF) of the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty for the violation of the contract on the price of milk". 

This was announced by the president of Coldiretti - the most important Italian agricultural union - Ettore Prandini on the occasion of the National Assembly held today in Rome. 

The legislative decree implementing the EU Directive on unfair commercial practices, strongly desired by Coldiretti, provides for the stop to 16 unfair practices ranging from compliance with payment terms (no more than 30 days for perishable products) to the prohibition of unilateral changes to contracts and double discount online auctions, from the limitations of sales below cost to the end of payments not connected to sales up to rigorously written contracts, but also that the prices recognized to farmers and breeders are not lower than the production costs. 

"Lactalis - according to Coldiretti - unilaterally modified the contract with the milk supplying farmers by decreasing the recognized prices and introducing, among other things, a new index connected among other things to the non-agreed European milk prices and strongly penalizing for Italian producers". 

The multinational Lactalis has acquired the national brands Parmalat, Locatelli, Invernizzi, Galbani, Cadermartori and Nuova Castelli and controls about 1/3 of the Italian national market in strategic sectors of the dairy sector.