Parma Ham and Report: The Disgusting “Made in Italy” Defended by Coldiretti
Parma Ham and Report, Coldiretti's disgusting "made in Italy" label. The episode of Report, on Rai3, was titled, not elegantly but effectively, "What Pigs!" And the reference was, rather than to the poor animals, the humans who deal with them.
Stuff that's stomach-churning. And even more revolting are the responses given by the farmers interviewed by Innocenzi. Some respond with insults, others get downright violent. One might expect a response from the Parma Consortium and the certifying body, CSQA. Were it not for the fact that the latter is paid directly by the companies: a classic case of a controlling body paid by the inspectors. The inspectors, of course, complain about the controls and render them ineffective, as demonstrated by wiretaps and documentary evidence in the Report story.
Faced with all this, one might expect a mea culpa, an apology to consumers, with the announcement of severe enforcement measures and sanctions for those responsible for this seemingly routine outrage. Yet the opposite is true. Voices are being raised against Report, which they want to cancel or at least downsize. Corriere della Sera reports that Confagricoltura president Massimiliano Giansanti complained to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that some state television programs "damage the reputation of our companies." As if they weren't the ones damaging their own reputations. And Coldiretti president Ettore Prandini follows suit, explaining that Report "discredits agricultural entrepreneurs."
But is this really the much-vaunted Made in Italy label? Do we really have to eat prosciutto from animals that live among dead carcasses, sick animals, and those kicked by farmers? Does anyone really need to apologize for this behavior? The result, if there isn't a reversal of the trend, would be to discourage consumption.
Honestly, we've lost our hunger.
