The key facts
- Italy's Council of Ministers approved a €60 million aid decree for the transport sector, agriculture and fishing.
- Road blockades in the south caused shortages of food and fuel; losses from the halt in mozzarella production are estimated at €3 million per day.
- The authorities are open to dialogue but warned of their readiness to dismantle barricades and apply a back-to-work order if negotiations fail.
Emergency aid decree
Italy's Council of Ministers on Thursday, 22 October 2026, approved a decree-law on emergency support for hauliers, agriculture and fishing. The decision came in response to mass protests — mainly by lorry drivers — against rising fuel prices and the cost of living, which have swept the south of the country. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wrote on X that an agreement had been reached with hauliers' associations, the funds were already being disbursed, and new measures for farmers and fishermen had been approved, adding: «The government listens to those who protest peacefully and is working on concrete responses».
Terms of the payments
The decree allocates €60 million to compensate fuel costs for drivers and farmers. According to Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida, the funds «will quickly arrive through Agea» and will go towards the purchase of approximately 121 million litres of fuel «with a contribution of up to 45 cents». He specified that the measure is valid until 15 October and compensates companies that have already purchased agricultural fuel, following the first intervention that covered the beginning of the year. The Agriculture Ministry will determine in the coming days the procedures and deadlines for submitting documents confirming the purchase of petrol or diesel, and will pay the subsidy directly to the beneficiaries' bank accounts within thirty days of receiving the paperwork. According to Euronews (Russian version), the payments are expected within a month.
Consequences of the protests
In the early hours of Thursday, before the decree was approved, lorry drivers in Sicily and Calabria suspended their work, including food transport. According to Italian officials, the strike halted the production of the famous buffalo-milk mozzarella, causing, by estimates, damage of €3 million in just 24 hours: milk does not reach the cheese dairies in the Naples region, and the finished cheese does not reach buyers. Because of the road blockades in the south, a serious food and fuel crisis has arisen: goods are not reaching shop shelves, perishable products are suffering the most, many petrol stations have run out of fuel, and in some areas the work of emergency services has been put at risk. Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Edoardo Rixi noted at a press conference that schools in a number of areas, including Campania, have switched to remote learning due to the fuel shortage.
The authorities' reaction and the continuation of the protests
Meloni said she had asked Interior Minister Piantedosi «to meet the demands of hauliers, farmers and trade representatives in order to ensure freedom of movement, supplies of goods to businesses and, consequently, to citizens», as well as to prevent price speculation, which «would otherwise be inevitable». After the signing of the decree, many activists ended their protests on Thursday, and food deliveries are gradually resuming. However, the protest as a whole has not stopped and has spread to new ports in the south of the country: fishing vessels remain at their moorings because of high diesel prices. Rixi reported that a back-to-work order had been requested to ensure basic public services that are under serious threat. He emphasised his readiness for constructive dialogue, but confirmed his intention to dismantle the barricades in the south if negotiations fail: «The back-to-work order and other measures are the last instruments we want to apply before clearing the protests. We cannot allow Naples' supermarkets to remain empty indefinitely, or people to walk on foot because there is no petrol at the stations. In the coming hours we will make a decision taking into account the responses received».
