View source for Agriculture in Italy

{{short description|Overview of the agriculture in Italy}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:Agriculture in Italy}}
[[File:Vineyards in Piemonte, Italy.jpg|thumb|right|[[Vineyard Landscape of Piedmont: Langhe-Roero and Monferrato|Vineyards in Langhe and Montferrat, Piedmont]]. Italy is the [[List of wine-producing countries|world's largest wine producer]] (22% of global market), as well as the country with the widest variety of indigenous [[Vitis|grapevine]] in the world.<ref name="wine">{{cite magazine|last=Woodard |first=Richard |url=http://www.decanter.com/news/wine-news/529822/italian-wine-now-22-of-global-market |title=Italian wine now 22% of global market |magazine=Decanter |date=19 March 2013 |access-date=8 February 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.inumeridelvino.it/2018/11/la-produzione-di-vino-nel-mondo-2018-prima-stima-oiv.html|title=L'Italia è il maggiore produttore di vino|access-date=11 November 2021|language=it}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://giornalevinocibo.com/2017/06/03/italia-prima-assoluta-per-vitgni-autoctoni-ecco-i-dati-dei-vari-stati/|title=L'Italia è il paese con più vitigni autoctoni al mondo|date=3 June 2017|access-date=11 November 2021|language=it}}</ref>.|300x300px]]

'''Agriculture in Italy''', one of the [[Economy of Italy|economic sectors of the country]], has developed since the [[5th millennium BC]]. In the 20th century, [[Italy]] transformed from a predominantly [[Agriculture|agricultural]] country to an [[Industry (economics)|industrial]] country. As a result, the agricultural sector (including [[silviculture]] and [[fishing]]) has seen employment drop dramatically, from 43% (in 1860) to 3.8% (in 2000) of the total,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://economia.unipr.it/DOCENTI/ZUPPIROLI/docs/files/01_SAA.pdf|title=Il sistema agroalimentare|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111012091741/http://economia.unipr.it/DOCENTI/ZUPPIROLI/docs/files/01_SAA.pdf|archive-date=12 October 2011|url-status=dead|access-date=11 May 2022|language=it}}</ref>{{sfn|INEA|2011|p=16}} a minimal percentage in the national economic framework. 

According to the last national agricultural census, in 2010 there was 891,000 people employed in agriculture, mostly men (71.3% of the total) and resident in [[Southern Italy]] (46.8% of the total).{{sfn|INEA|2011|p=15}} In 2010 the Italian agricultural area was equal to {{convert|17800000|ha|0|abbr=on}}, of which {{convert|12700000|ha|0|abbr=on}} are used, and is concentrated above all in Southern Italy (63%).{{sfn|INEA|2011|p=10}}

== Description ==
[[File:Chianti Hills.jpg|thumb|Chianti Hills, in the region of [[Chianti (region)|Chianti]], [[Tuscany]].]]

According to the last national agricultural census, there were 1.6&nbsp;million farms in 2010 (−32.4% since 2000) covering {{convert|12700000|ha|0|abbr=on|disp=or}} (63% of which are located in [[Southern Italy]]).<ref name="agrocensus">{{cite web |url=http://dati-censimentoagricoltura.istat.it/ |title=Censimento Agricoltura 2010 |date=24 October 2010 |publisher=[[National Institute of Statistics (Italy)|ISTAT]] |access-date=11 February 2015}}</ref> The vast majority (99%) are family-operated and small, averaging only {{convert|8|ha|0|abbr=on}} in size.<ref name="agrocensus"/> Of the total surface area in agricultural use (forestry excluded), grain fields take up 31%, [[olive tree]] orchards 8.2%, [[vineyard]]s 5.4%, [[citrus]] orchards 3.8%, [[sugar beet]]s 1.7%, and horticulture 2.4%. The remainder is primarily dedicated to pastures (25.9%) and feed grains (11.6%).<ref name="agrocensus"/> The northern part of Italy produces primarily Maize corn, rice, [[sugar beet]]s, [[soybean]]s, meat, fruits and [[dairy product]]s, while the South specializes in wheat and [[citrus fruit]]s. Livestock includes 6 million head of cattle, 8.6&nbsp;million head of [[swine]], 6.8&nbsp;million head of sheep, and 0.9&nbsp;million head of goats.<ref name="agrocensus"/> The total annual production of the [[Fishing industry by country|fishing industry in Italy]] from capture and [[aquaculture]], including [[crustacean]]s and [[molluscs]], is around 480,000 tons.

Italy is the [[List of wine-producing countries|largest producer of wine]] in the world, and one of the leading producers of [[olive oil]], fruits (apples, olives, grapes, oranges, lemons, pears, apricots, hazelnuts, peaches, cherries, plums, strawberries, and kiwifruits), and vegetables (especially artichokes and tomatoes). The most famous [[Italian wine]]s are probably the [[Tuscany (wine)|Tuscan]] [[Chianti]] and the [[Piedmont (wine)|Piedmontese]] [[Barolo]]. Other famous wines are [[Barbaresco]], [[Barbera d'Asti]], [[Brunello di Montalcino]], [[Frascati DOC|Frascati]], [[Montepulciano d'Abruzzo]], [[Morellino di Scansano]], [[Amarone]] della Valpolicella DOCG and the [[sparkling wine]]s [[Franciacorta DOCG|Franciacorta]] and [[Prosecco]]. Quality goods in which Italy specialises, particularly the already mentioned wines and [[List of Italian DOP cheeses|regional cheeses]], are often protected under the quality assurance labels [[Denominazione di origine controllata|DOC/DOP]]. This [[Geographical indications and traditional specialities in the European Union|geographical indication certificate]], which is attributed by the European Union, is considered important to avoid confusion with low-quality mass-produced [[Ersatz good|ersatz products]].

In fact, [[Italian cuisine]] is one of the most popular and copied around the world.<ref name="bbc">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-13760559 |title=How pasta became the world's favourite food |publisher=bbc |date=15 June 2011 |access-date=28 September 2014}}</ref> The lack or total unavailability of some of its most characteristic ingredients outside of Italy, also and above all to falsifications (or food fraud), leads to the complete denaturalization of Italian ingredients.<ref name="contraffazione">{{cite web|url=https://www.lacucinaitaliana.it/news/trend/contraffazione-alimentare/|title=I finti prodotti italiani? Anche in Italia!|access-date=30 November 2021|language=it}}</ref> This phenomenon, widespread in all continents, is better known as ''[[Italian Sounding]]'', consisting in the use of words as well as images, colour combinations (the [[Italian tricolour]]), geographical references, brands evocative of Italy to promote and market agri-food products which in reality have nothing to do with Italian cuisine.<ref name="agrifood">{{Cite web|url=https://www.agrifood.tech/sicurezza-alimentare/italian-sounding-food-che-cose-e-come-funziona/|title=In cosa consiste l'Italian Sounding|access-date=30 November 2021|language=it}}</ref>

== History ==
=== Prehistory ===
[[File:Centres of origin and spread of agriculture.svg|thumb|right|upright=1.5|Approximate centers of origin of agriculture in the [[Neolithic Revolution]] and its spread in prehistory as understood in 2003.<ref name="DiamondandBellwood2003">{{Cite journal |  doi = 10.1126/science.1078208 | last1 = Diamond | first1 = J.|author-link1=Jared Diamond | last2 = Bellwood | first2 = P. | title = Farmers and Their Languages: The First Expansions | journal = Science | volume = 300 | issue = 5619 | pages = 597–603 | year = 2003 | pmid = 12714734|bibcode = 2003Sci...300..597D | citeseerx = 10.1.1.1013.4523 | s2cid = 13350469 }}</ref>]]

Several archaeological finds show that the first agricultural settlements began in Italy around the [[5th millennium BC]]. Archaeologists have clearly identified the paths followed by the first [[Anatolia]]n peasants who spread the [[Neolithic Revolution]] across the [[European continent]], primarily on the [[Mediterranean coast]] and along the [[Danube]]. Initially they arrived in [[Sicily]] by sea, where they founded agricultural villages similar to those of the [[Fertile Crescent]] ([[Anatolia]], [[Syria]], [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]], the valleys of the [[Tigris]] and [[Euphrates]]).<ref>{{Cite web|last=Nanni|first=Paolo|date=|title=HISTORY OF ITALIAN AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPES|url=http://rsa.storiaagricoltura.it/pdfsito/145_3.pdf|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2 February 2021|website=http://rsa.storiaagricoltura.it1}}</ref> 

Later, after having crossed the [[Alps|Alpine arc]], the peasants who came from the Danube built villages with the same characteristics as those of the [[Neolithic]] in the [[Balkans]], which, in the space of a millennium, recorded considerable developments.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Curtotti|first=Michael|date=28 September 2018|title=Ancient Italy: The Arrival of Agriculture and the People from the Sea: 6000BC|url=https://beyondforeignness.org/5848|access-date=2 February 2021|website=Beyond Foreignness|language=en-AU}}</ref>

=== Ancient history ===
{{further|Agriculture in ancient Rome}}
In the [[Bronze Age]], the entire [[Po (river)|Po]] plain was colonized thanks to the so-called "terramare", dwellings similar to stilts. These inhabitants had perfected the methods of cultivation and breeding adopted in the [[Neolithic Period]], which remained substantially the same until the [[Middle Ages]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Nanni|first=Paolo|date=|title=History of Italian Agriculture and Agricultural Landscapes in the Late Middle Ages|url=https://lisbon2016rh.files.wordpress.com/2015/12/onw-0272.pdf|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2 February 2021|website=ONW}}</ref> Also in Central Italy it is the starting period to a peasant society with increasing agricultural diversity. But locations were dominantly in hilly terrain using a [[slash-and-burn]] method. Mediterranean type ploughs with convertible wooden ploughshares were used. In South Italy first evidence of olive cultivation can be observed in this time. 
[[File:Olbia, fattoria romana di S'Imbalconadu (12).jpg|thumb|The remains of an [[Ancient Rome|ancient Roman]] farm in [[Olbia]], [[Sardinia]]]]

The [[Iron Age]] saw the appearance of brick houses in rural areas, breeding of livestock, cultivation of [[fabaceae]], accumulation of bronze objects, craftsmenship, trade and individualism. The time of the [[Roman Republic]] was dominated by the revolution of iron: ploughshares, pick-axes on the fields (enabling the cultivation of heavy soils), sickles and axes for deforestation as well as iron material for harvesting and pruning of grapes. It was the origin of a landscape with mixed cultures and systematic planning of the terrain around the cities. There was a great development of agricultural technology including haymaking, laying fallow of grounds and hydraulic works (cunicoli). And the commercial grape-olive-culture evolved.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pure.rug.nl/ws/portalfiles/portal/9611031/thesis.pdf |last=Joolen |first=Ester |title=Parco Nazionale del Circeo |publisher=Parco Nazionale del Circeo |access-date=29 December 2022}}</ref> The [[Eastern world|East]] had developed great empires based on the cultivation of cereals, mainly wheat and barley: Rome, which established itself at the center of the [[Italian Peninsula|peninsula]], conquered many of the great plains of the then known world, assigning each of them a specific function based on its plans of [[Economy of Italy|economic]] and [[Military history of Italy|military domination]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Nanni|first=Paolo|date=22 January 2016|title=History of Italian agriculture and agricultural landscapes in the late Middle ages|url=http://www.georgofili.world/detail.aspx?id=121|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2 February 2021|website=www.georgofili.world|language=en}}</ref> 

Countries whose borders were not threatened by powerful enemies were exploited to feed the [[population of Rome]], the "womb" of the [[Empire of Rome|Empire]], where hundreds of thousands of former warrior peasants, stripped of their land by the aristocracy and the mercantile class, claimed their right to receive bread and [[Roman circus|circus]]es (''panem et circences'') as citizens of the state. Countries close to threatened borders, such as the [[Rhine]] and the [[Danube]], were responsible for producing the grain needed to feed the legions encamped on the edge, as in the case of France. 

To meet the high demand for food from the central areas of the empire, and from Rome itself, especially from the wealthier classes, the first techniques of cultivation, fruit and vegetables, breeding, pigs, sheep, poultry were developed, pre-industrial in nature. Analyzing the characteristics of this agriculture, designed to satisfy the strong demand, both in terms of quantity and quality, the Spaniard [[Columella|Lucio Giunio Moderato Columella]], owner of the vineyards between the "[[Castelli Romani]]", wrote the first scientific treatise concerning the techniques of agriculture in the western world.<ref>{{Cite web|title=On Agriculture, Volume I — Columella|url=https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674993983|access-date=2 February 2021|website=www.hup.harvard.edu|language=en}}</ref>

=== Medieval history ===
[[File:Crescenzi calendar.jpg|thumb|Agricultural calendar, c. 1470, from a manuscript of [[Pietro de Crescenzi]]]]

After the end of the Empire, and for almost a thousand years, agriculture and the economy experienced a period of technological regression, closer to that of the Bronze Age both in Greece and in the regions of [[Roman Italy]]. Productivity decreased, but the rural population, living in small villages scattered in a territory of woods and swamps, still managed to derive a significant part of their livelihood from natural habitats, such as meadows and swamps: meat, fish, honey, furs, fabrics.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hays|first=Jeffrey|title=AGRICULTURE IN ANCIENT ROME {{!}} Facts and Details|url=http://factsanddetails.com/world/cat56/sub408/item2049.html|access-date=2 February 2021|website=factsanddetails.com|language=en}}</ref> 

Towards the end of the Middle Ages, when the first craft and trade companies developed in Europe, new agricultural systems appeared in [[Flanders]], in the [[Po Valley]] and in the smaller plains of [[central Italy]]. In the Po Valley there has been the development of a new system of relations between man and natural resources and of an agriculture based on irrigation. 

Of course, in the Middle East, irrigation allowed, thousands of years ago, an enormous production of wheat on land that has since become deserted for climatic reasons. Late medieval Italian agriculture was based on particularly [[intensive farming]], and on the production of textiles, fruit and vegetables on a large scale.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Italy – Agriculture, forestry, and fishing|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy|access-date=2 February 2021|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref>

=== Modern history ===
[[File:Italy Crop Land and Selected Crops - DPLA - 42908bb079087249622b993c35e275f8.jpg|thumb|right|Production of selected crops, 1948]]
Favored by the abundance of food, the [[Italian cities]] became the area of greatest export of all the most sought-after products of the moment: wool, weapons, glass, cheese of an inimitable quality, and able to be preserved for long periods. Unfortunately, this extraordinary wealth of the Italian cities was not adequately protected by a [[Politics of Italy|political]] and [[Italian military|military force]] proportionate to their opulence, so it stimulated the envy of the two major powers of the time, France and Spain, who sent their armies. 

For two centuries, the fertile fields of the peninsula transformed one of the richest countries on the continent into a land of economic and civil misery, of which the chronicles of the seventeenth century bear witness.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Corrado|first=Alessandra|date=June 2017|title=Migrant crop pickers in Italy and Spain – Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung|url=https://www.boell.de/sites/default/files/e-paper_migrant-crop-pickers-in-italy-and-spain.pdf|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2 February 2021|website=www.boell.de}}</ref> During the Enlightenment, [[Lombardy|Lombard]] agriculture resumed its growth by increasing the wealth of the countryside surrounding [[Milan]], with products such as cheese and silk, making this city one of the richest in Europe, becoming one of the great cultural capitals of this extraordinary period of [[European History]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Caliandro|first=Angelo|date=7 February 2011|title=Luigi Cavazza Protagonista del progresso delle scienze agrarie|journal=Italian Journal of Agronomy|language=It|volume=1|issue=3s|pages=|doi=10.4081/ija.2006.s417|issn=2039-6805|doi-access=free}}</ref>

=== Contemporary history ===
[[File:Veduta della Basilica di San Francesco ad Assisi (2).JPG|thumb|Cultivated field in [[Umbria]]. On background, the [[Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi]]]]
[[File:" 12 - ITALY - Ulivo ( Olea europaea) e grano wheat nel Salento (ITALIA) popop.JPG|thumb|Olive grove in [[Salento]], [[Apulia]]]]

The 19th century was the period of the "[[Risorgimento]]", a movement in which the peasant classes did not take part. This movement resulted in a form of government in which landowners, the beneficiaries of backward agriculture, were the majority, so they took the opportunity to exploit the condition of the peasantry to their advantage to strengthen their privileges. At the end of the century, we can say that offloading the costs of the agrarian crisis on farmers was the only concern of the first unitary parliaments.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Vinciguerra|first=Salvatore|date=2014|title=Mercantile routes and agriculture transformation in Southern Italy and Sicily between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries|url=https://ideas.repec.org/a/mul/jrkmxm/doi10.1410-78238y2014i3p281-324.html|journal=Rivista di storia economica|language=en|issue=3|pages=281–324}}</ref> 

The extraordinary period that began at the end of the century, with the governments of [[Giovanni Giolitti]], that opened Italy to new horizons of economic and social progress, progress interrupted too soon by the [[Great War]] and followed by a long period of political stagnation. This convinced the ever powerful families of large landowners to resort to [[fascism]], with an agricultural policy aimed at increasing the production of wheat to provide the energy necessary for the resurrection of the splendors of [[ancient Rome]]. All other aspects of agricultural progress were completely ignored.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Cohen|first=Jon S.|date=1979|title=Fascism and Agriculture in Italy: Policies and Consequences|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2595966|journal=The Economic History Review|volume=32|issue=1|pages=70–87|doi=10.2307/2595966|jstor=2595966 |issn=0013-0117}}</ref> 

At the end of the [[Second World War]], food production in the country could only count on a more backward agriculture, also hampered by the damage caused by the war. In that period [[Giuseppe Medici]], a famous agronomist and statesman of international standing, became [[Minister of Agriculture (Italy)|Minister of Agriculture]]. Also thanks to his interventions, Italy was the first country to host an international conference of agricultural researchers, a conference that allowed the creation of links between research programs capable of increasing interactions and exchanges, to increase the production efficiency in agriculture.<ref name=":0" /> 

In the thirty years that followed the war there was the birth, in the peninsula, of a generation of great agronomists, scientists engaged in the territory outside the traditional schemes. In Europe, agricultural techniques were completely renewed and the first livestock farms were created on the [[Agriculture in the United States|American model]], based on the cultivation of hybrid maize, a completely new production framework was outlined in the fruit and viticulture sector, which will then be able to compete, in the following decades, with [[Agriculture in France|French agriculture]]. 

This "golden age" ends abruptly in 1980: the radical changes in the agricultural policy of the [[European Community]] were the first blow. Subsequently, half of the agricultural land disappeared, abandoned due to overbuilding, the production potential of one of the most fertile plains on the continent was considerably reduced. More recently, the environmental movement, the most radical in Europe, called on the political class to end cutting edge agricultural research. Italy finds itself forced to produce on a small surface, with increasingly obsolete means. In Rome, the debate on the future of national agriculture became confused and incomprehensible.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=2014|title=Agricultural extension and farm women in the 1980s|url=http://www.fao.org/3/u5350e/u5350e00.pdf|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2 February 2021|website=FAO|location=Rome}}</ref>

== Statistics ==
The data relating to the surface of agricultural holdings for the [[Regions of Italy|Italian regions]] and macroregions are shown below.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Istat|url=http://siqual.istat.it/SIQual/visualizza,do?id=5000008&refresh=true|access-date=1 February 2021|website=siqual.istat.it}}</ref>

===Regions===
{{Italy Labelled Map Scalable|image-width=380}}
{| class="wikitable sortable" width="65%" border="1"
![[Regions of Italy|Region]]
!1999
!2003
!2005
!2007
|-
|{{flag|Piedmont}}
|{{convert|1,533,894|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,467,267|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,459,843|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,403,893|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Aosta Valley}}
|{{convert|135,927|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|127,458|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|159,842|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|147,741|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Lombardy}}
|{{convert|1,392,331|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,235,447|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,355,039|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,258,471|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Liguria}}
|{{convert|184,884|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|138,509|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|153,851|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|135,065|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol}}
|{{convert|999,714|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|991,674|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|987,294|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|983,005|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Veneto}}
|{{convert|1,067,788|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,171,604|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,170,343|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,121,386|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{flag|Friuli Venezia Giulia}}}}
|{{convert|386,922|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|299,603|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|392,692|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|361,868|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Emilia-Romagna}}
|{{convert|1,576,967|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,368,911|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,440,156|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,340,654|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Tuscany}}
|{{convert|1,664,674|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,495,329|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,543,548|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,458,301|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Umbria}}
|{{convert|588,372|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|634,615|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|622,100|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|585,144|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Marche}}
|{{convert|818,809|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|686,552|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|694,702|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|671,481|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Lazio}}
|{{convert|1,128,164|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,024,701|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,020,391|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|940,447|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Abruzzo}}
|{{convert|753,945|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|623,341|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|640,545|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|657,272|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Molise}}
|{{convert|316,797|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|261,876|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|281,762|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|265,463|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Campania}}
|{{convert|839,235|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|769,198|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|822,277|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|777,493|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Apulia}}
|{{convert|1,547,972|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,377,721|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,342,587|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,317,444|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Basilicata}}
|{{convert|748,278|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|702,417|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|694,127|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|715,784|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Calabria}}
|{{convert|837,877|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|781,893|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|822,403|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|757,943|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Sicily}}
|{{convert|1,739,829|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,459,612|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,426,513|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,415,233|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{flag|Sardinia}}
|{{convert|1,901,397|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,614,842|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,586,844|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1,527,457|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
!{{flag|Italy}}
!{{convert|20,163,776|ha|0|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|18,232,570|ha|0|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|18,616,859|ha|0|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|17,841,544|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|}

===Macroregions===
{| class="wikitable sortable" width="65%" border="1"
!Territory
!1999
!2003
!2005
!2007
|-
|{{Nowrap|[[Northwest Italy]]}}
|{{convert|3,247,036|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|2,968,681|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,128,575|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|2,945,170|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|{{Nowrap|[[Northeast Italy]]}}
|{{convert|4,031,391|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,831,791|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,990,485|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,806,913|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|[[Central Italy]]
|{{convert|4,200,019|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,841,197|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,880,742|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,655,373|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|[[South Italy]]
|{{convert|5,044,104|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|4,516,447|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|4,603,701|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|4,491,399|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
|[[Insular Italy]]
|{{convert|3,641,226|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,074,455|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3,013,356|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|2,942,690|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|-
!Italy
!{{convert|20,163,776|ha|0|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|18,232,570|ha|0|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|18,616,859|ha|0|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|17,841,544|ha|0|abbr=on}}
|}

== See also ==
{{portal|Agriculture|Italy}}
* [[Agriculture in ancient Rome]]
* [[Cascina a corte]]
* [[Dairy farming in Italy]]
* [[Economy of Italy]]
* [[Italian wine]]
* [[Traditional Italian maize varieties]]
== References ==
<references />

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book|author=Emilio Sereni|title=History of the Italian Agricultural Landscape|year=1997|publisher=[[Princeton University Press]]|isbn=978-06-9101-215-5}}
* {{cite book|author=Istituto nazionale di economia agraria|title=L'agricoltura italiana conta 2011|year=2011|url=https://www.crea.gov.it/documents/68457/0/L%27Agricoltura+Italiana+Conta_2011.pdf/e4b1eef3-a762-9474-5242-b13a41029838?t=1563349577004|ref={{sfnref|INEA|2011}}|isbn=978-88-8145-324-5|language=it}}



== Externals links ==
{{Wikisource}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.confagricoltura.it/ita/|title=Confagricoltura|language=it}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.newfarmers.it/agricoltura-in-italia/|title=L'agricoltura in Italia|language=it}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.crea.gov.it/web/politiche-e-bioeconomia/-/agricoltura-italiana-conta|title=L'agricoltura italiana conta|language=it}}

{{Economy of Italy}}
{{Italy topics}}
{{Europe topic|Agriculture in}}

[[Category:Agriculture in Italy]]