A NATIONAL PROJECT ON ORGANIC HAZELNUT PRODUCTION IN ITALY

The Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (Mi.P.A.F.) is going to finance a national project on the development of organic hazelnut production in Italy, currently taking place in limited areas. The project “Studies on hazelnuts aimed at obtaining high-quality organic production” involves eight partners belonging to the University, the National Research Council and Mi.P.A.F. Research Institutes. The objectives of the project are to promote environmental-friendly techniques focused on agronomic practices, fruit quality, tree physiology, and detection and control of main insect pests and pathogens. There will also be a thorough economic analysis of the organic production. The investigations will be performed in hazelnut orchards, experimental fields and laboratories located in Piedmont (i.e. the Langhe district and Torino), Latium (i.e. the provinces of Viterbo and Rome) and Sardinia (i.e. the provinces of Nuoro and Sassari). Many private co-operatives and laboratories as well as the regional agriculture services will be actively involved in the project, which will last until 2007.