INTEGRATED FRUIT PRODUCTION IN ITALY

The minimum requirements regarding the protection of the environment demanded from the growers and packers by the individual regional programmes are quite different. These requirements depend mainly on the meteorological conditions in the area, on the growing and marketing structures and on the attitude of the responsible persons towards the integrated concept. Therefore, the number and quality of pesticides permitted in each individual programme, differ quite substantially (Table 1).

Table 1: Number of pesticides allowed in the IFP Schemes of the five Italian regions

Region	Insecticides + Acarides	Fungicides
Piemont	22	23
Lombardy	20	22
Emilia-Romana	21	16
Trentino	21	26
South Tyrol	17	19

In some programmes the most dangerous pesticides have been excluded, in others not.

The percentage enrolment of fruit farms to the programme also varies between the regions; from 15 to 85%. The documentation required on the production measures taken during they year, the number, detail and liability to the monitoring checks (field recordings, residue analyses, store houses) are also quite different in each region.

Piemont, Emilia-Romagna and South Tyrol have created their own trade mark for fruit from integrated production (IFP) and from integrated plant protection (IPM).

Until now, there has been little difference in the prices paid to the growers, between integrated and traditionally produced fruit. In South Tyrol the growers' associations are studying the possibility of

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