LETTER FROM ROME

A new episode has opened in the Italian government's war on wild boar. Rome has decided to send in the army to deal with the overpopulation of wild boar in the countryside and on the outskirts of Italian cities. The measure is part of a legislative package to protect the country's agriculture and food products, providing for the mobilization of 177 soldiers to hunt wild boar throughout the country.

The aim is to contain a serious epidemic of African swine fever, a disease transmitted to farm pigs by their wild cousins and which threatens the entire Italian charcuterie industry and its €8.2 billion in annual revenues. The epizootic detected in early 2022 in the country is potentially fatal for 90% of affected animals. It is spreading rapidly, particularly in the northwest of the Peninsula, causing producers in the Padana plain, cradle of Parma and San Daniele hams, to fear the worst.

In Italy, the cumbersome presence of wild boar has become a chronic problem that never ceases to agitate opinion and the public authorities, the latter aiming to reduce their population by 80%. Already in 2022, Parliament had passed a measure allowing Italian hunters to stalk wild boar in urban areas and natural parks. You only have to read the headlines in the regional press to appreciate the extent of the phenomenon. In Lazio, wild boar have taken to the streets of tourist villages in the Castelli Romani area. Between May 4 and 5, some were even seen lounging on Lake Albano beach.

Their presence is so invasive that the town council of Castel Gandolfo has had to publish a guide on how to behave when coming face to face with these animals, which can weigh up to 200 kg. The key is to keep calm, avoid running (the wild boar will always be faster) and make plenty of noise.

In Castelli Romani, calls for vigilance have also been issued by local authorities, who are particularly concerned about the risk of road accidents owing to the presence of wild boar on the roads. The same concerns were expressed in the Pescara area. On May 9, residents of this Abruzzo seaside resort filmed a large family of wild boar settling under a bridge.

A few days earlier, a road accident was caused by the collision of a vehicle and four ungulates. On Wednesday, May 8, another group of animals was reported by residents on the outskirts of Sinnai, Sardinia, where they were feeding on the contents of torn garbage bags. The day before, on Monday, May 6, wild boars were spotted in gardens and between houses in the Elce district of Perugia, causing panic among residents, one of whom reported being surrounded by seven hungry animals.

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