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Even during the Roman Empire, the Romans had to import grain. Over time fertile land of the Italian peninsula gradually transformed Italy from being one of the richest areas of Europe into one of the poorest. The foundation of Italian wealth, industries like banking, wool, weaving, glass had declined. Italy was still a largely agricultural country at the time of Italian independence -- the "Risorgimento" and the foundation of the Italian Kingdom (1850s). The country had began to modernizes, but at mid-century over 40 percent of the population was employed in agriculture. 【INEA】 This probably does not capture the true importance of agriculture because some of Italian agriculture was at the subsistence agriculture. What many modern readers do not understand is that in Italy like most other countries. the peasantry was largely landless. (America and France) were rare exceptions in which the land was owned by the people who actually farmed it. The landless Italian peasantry was largely apolitical and not involved in the "Risorgimento". Landowners wre involved and they were the beneficiaries of the agricultural system that kept the peasantry both poor and uneducated. Italian agriculture was largely unchanged since Roman times, especially in the south. Agricultural land in many areas was seriously depleted. The focus was largely on grain production to produce the bread which was so important in the Italian diet. During the medieval era, pasta also became important--a culinary import from China. There was also silk production (silviculture). 【Zuppiroli】 Changes began with the Agrarian Crisis (1880s). Italy's first unitary Parliament addressed the growing Agrarian Crisis, but was heavily oriented toward the land owners. 【Vinciguerra】 Agricultural production did improve, but the depleted Italian soil and lack of innovation was not capable of supporting the growing Italian population. Unlike America, innovation did not occur because labor was so cheap, there was no real incentive to invest in modern methods. Italians began migrating to America (1870s). Homesteading was still possible, but few Italians despite coming from rural backgrounds had an interest in farming. Most decided that they wanted to live in cities and some decided to seek jobs in America's booming industry, earning far more than they had as agricultural workers in Italy. Others began by operating carts selling a range of merchandise. This was often the first step to opening small shops. The few that did turn to farming often pursued truck farms growing vegetables close to the big cities rather than grain farming on the Plains. (This was the same reason that the slave South could not compete with the free North in the American Civil War.) The future of Italian agriculture was with specialized high value Mediterranean products for the domestic and export market. Transport here was an issue, but even in ancient times wine produced by grapes could be exported/ As transport options improved, high value Mediterranean food and drink exports improved in importance. Protection of the traditional cereal farming delayed the change. The Fascist regime (1923-44), for example, gave considerable effort to increasing grain production--the Battle for Grain. After World War II we see a major shift from agriculture, especially traditional grain production.
Like almost all other contrives, the Italian economy throughout most of history was based on agriculture. Even so during the Roman era, Italy had to import grains to feed its growing urban population, especially Rome. Rome was an outlier among ancient civilzatiins where for the most part, the land was worked by a landless peasantry. Rome and Greece were were rare societies in which slaves were a substantial part of the labor force.
Agriculture during the medieval era was affected by the heavy use of the land and the depletion of the soil. Over time fertile land of the Italian peninsula gradually transformed Italy from being one of the richest areas of Europe into one of the poorest. During the medieval era, pasta also became important--a culinary import from China. But as pasta was made from wheat, it did not change agriculture. It did create a culinary tradition different than much of Europe. There was also silk production (silviculture). The Greeks introduced wine making to Italy and Italy over time would become a wine making powerhouse.
As part of the Renaissance, the European economy began to recover, emerging from the medieval era. Northern Italy became the most prosperous era of Europe. There were advances in thinking, art, and math. Universities began to appear. The foundation of Italian wealth in the north became industries like banking, wool, weaving, and glass. Southern Italy still dominated by agriculture did not share in these developments.
Italy was a divided country at the times of independence. There was a prosperous modern north with manufacturing and developing industries and a largely agricultural, virtually feudal south A major factor here as the fact that much of northern Italy was influenced by the Germans as part of the Austrian/Austro-Hungarian Empire. The "Risorgimento" led to the foundation of the Italian Kingdom (1850s).
The country had began to modernizes, but at mid-century over 40 percent of the population was employed in agriculture. 【INEA】 This probably does not capture the true importance of agriculture because some of Italian agriculture was at the subsistence agriculture. What many modern readers do not fully understand is that in Italy like most other countries. the peasantry was largely landless. (America and France) were rare exceptions in which the land was owned by the people who actually farmed it. The landless Italian peasantry was largely apolitical and not involved in the "Risorgimento". Landowners were involved and they were the beneficiaries of the agricultural system that kept the peasantry both poor and uneducated. Italian agriculture was largely unchanged since Roman times, especially in the south. Agricultural land in many areas was seriously depleted. The focus was largely on grain production to produce the bread and pasta which was so important in the Italian diet. 【Zuppiroli】
Changes began with the Agrarian Crisis (1880s). Italy's first unitary Parliment addressed the growing Agrarian Crisis, but was heavily oriented toward the land owners. 【Vinciguerra】 Agricultural production did improve, but the depleted Italian soil and lack of innovation was not capable of supporting the growing Italian population. Unlike America, economic innovation at least in the south did not occur because labor was so cheap, there was no real incentive to invest in modern methods.
Italians began migrating to America (1870s). In America Homesteading was still possible, but few Italians despite coming from rural backgrounds had an interest in farming. Most decided that they wanted to live in cities and some desired jobs in America's booming industry, earning far more than they had as agricultural workers in Italy. Others began by operating carts selling a range of merchandise. This was often the first step to opening small shops. The few that did turn to farming pursued truck farms producing vegetable close to the big cities rather than grain farming on the Plains. (This was the same reason that the American slave South could not compete with the free North in the American Civil War.)
The future of Italian agriculture was with specialized high value Mediterranean products for the domestic and export market. Interestingly, this was the one form of agriculture that Italians immigrants showed an interest in when they reached America. This was called truck farming. These were small farms that grew vegetables and fruits for the growing cities. Transport for high-value agriculture as an issue, but even in ancient times wine produced by grapes could be exported. As transport options improved, high value Mediterranean food and drink exports improved in importance. Protection of the traditional cereal farming and the continued ownership of much of the land by a small number of wealthy land owners delayed the change.
The Fascist regime (1923-44), for example, gave considerable effort to increasing grain production--the Battle for Grain. The Fascist, however, made no effort toward badly needed land reform. Several European counties launched land reformed programs, but this was usually because ethnic issies wre involved such as foreign onerships of major estates. This was ome impact ofcrating small vountries with a dominant etnicity. This was occurring throughout Eastern and Central Europe. In italy the suituatiion was different. The lasrge lndowners were almost all Italian. While Germany took a turn toward Fasisms (the NAZIs), the peasantry was not a mjor element in the Party's support. This was not the case with the NAZIs in Germany wherevthe rural populatiion turned toward the NAZIs. The agricultural and rural policies of European Fascist parties tended towards modernization. 【Fertig】 This was the case in Italy, but theFascists did not affects the question of land onership, which is one reason that Mussolini atracted little support from the peasantry. One rural issue that the Fascists did address was to expand the educar=tional sysem in rural areas.
At the time of World War II, a substasbtial pasrt of the Italian workforce was still involved in Agricultutre, especially in the South. This rapidly declined after the War. After World War II we see a major shift from agriculture, especially traditional grain production. Industry boomed in northern Italy. Much of this was led by the German Economic Miracle. and assisted by the American Marshall Plan. Italian workers found jobs in German factories. The money sent home helped igniter the Italian economy. The German Economic Miracle generated demand for Italian exports, including agricultural products. This all led to the Italian Economic Miracle. And while industrial expansion was in progress, the new Republican Government decided on fundamental land reform. Like America, Italy also has sharecroppers, but the system was different. Until the 1960s it was very common in central and northern Italy. The situation was worst in the south. There were sharecroppers, but many farmers were simple day laborers. A law was passed to assist the peasants to buy the fields where they worked (1950). Another new law prohibited new sharecropping contracts (1964). Finally a law passed converting any remaining sharecropping contracts to rental contracts (1982). We see a shift in agriculture that began before World War II. There was a continuing shidt to high value crops. One unanticipated change was the birth rate fell. Slowly at first and precipitously by the turn of the 21st century. It was quite high until the 1960s, with the economic growth and urbanization, but then it dropped sharply as rural populations declined.
Fertig, Georg. Agriculture in the Age of Fascism: Authoritarian Technocracy and Rural Modernization, 1922-1945 (Publisher: Brepols Publishers: 2014). Published: January 2014
Istituto nazionale di economia agraria (INEA). "L'agricoltura italiana conta 2011" (2011).
Vinciguerra, Salvatore (2014). "Mercantile routes and agriculture transformation in Southern Italy and Sicily between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries," Rivista di storia economica Vol. 3 (2014), pp. 281–324.
Zuppiroli, Marco. "Corso di 'Economia Agroalimentare (Sistema e Mercati)" (Università degli Studi di Parma).
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