Vol. 15 No. 3 (2026)
Full Research Articles

How milk quotas and the CAP affect GI Systems: The case of Parmigiano Reggiano PDO

PDF Suppl. Mat.
  • Alberto Giannecchini,
  • Lisa Baldi,
  • Michele Donati,
  • Filippo Arfini
Alberto Giannecchini
Department of Economics and Management, University of Parma, Italy
Lisa Baldi
Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Italy
Michele Donati
Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Italy
Filippo Arfini
Department of Economics and Management, University of Parma, Italy
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/bae-18285

Published 2025-12-14

Keywords

  • agent-based modeling,
  • Positive Mathematical Programing (PMP),
  • agricultural policy,
  • Geographical indications,
  • milk quota

How to Cite

Giannecchini, A., Baldi, L., Donati, M., & Arfini, F. (2025). How milk quotas and the CAP affect GI Systems: The case of Parmigiano Reggiano PDO. Bio-Based and Applied Economics, 15(3), 13–27. https://doi.org/10.36253/bae-18285

Copyright (c) 2026 Alberto Giannecchini, Lisa Baldi, Michele Donati, Filippo Arfini

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Crossref
Scopus
Google Scholar
Europe PMC

Abstract

This article investigates the application of the milk quota system to Geographical Indications (GIs), using the Parmigiano Reggiano PDO cheese as a case study. Firstly, an overview on the empirical context focuses on the evolution of the cheese production under the rules set by the GI-Group. Afterwards, an ex-ante analysis evaluates the impacts of the milk quota rules under the CAP 2023-2027 scheme on the Parmigiano Reggiano PDO production system. The latter assessment is addressed through an Agent-Based Model based on the Positive Mathematical Programming approach. The results indicate that the quota system leads to a concentration of production in larger dairy farms, with environmental and social effects that negatively impact the sustainable rural development model advocated by the Common Agricultural Policy.

PDF Suppl. Mat.

References

  1. AllevaWEB (2025). Parmigiano Reggiano 2016-2024 (e oltre): la filiera raccontata dai suoi numeri. Available at: https://allevaweb.it/parmigiano-reggiano-la-filiera-raccontata-dai-suoi-numeri/. Last accessed: October 2025.
  2. Arfini, F., Donati, M., Petriccione, G. and Solazzo, R. (2008). An impact assessment of the CAP reform health check on the Italian tomato sector. European Association of Agricultural Economists, 109th Seminar, November 20.21, 2008, Viterbo, Italy.
  3. Arfini, F., Donati, M., and Zuppiroli, M. (2005). AGRISP, un modello di simulazione regionale per valutare gli effetti per l’Italia di modifiche alle politiche agricole. In La riforma delle politiche agricole dell’UE ed il negoziato WTO: Il contributo di alcune ricerche quantitative alla valutazione dei loro effetti sull’agricoltura italiana, pages 81–128. Franco Angeli (ed.).
  4. Baldi, L., Arfini, F., Calzolai, S., and Donati, M. (2023). An Impact Assessment of GHG Taxation on Emilia-Romagna Dairy Farms through an Agent-Based Model Based on PMP. Land, 12(7):1409. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/land12071409
  5. Baldi, L., Calzolai, S., Arfini, F., and Donati, M. (2024). Predicting the effect of the Common Agricultural Policy post-2020 using an agent-based model based on PMP methodology. Bio-Based and Applied Economics, 13(4), 333–351. https://doi.org/10.36253/bae-14592 DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/bae-14592
  6. Baldock, D., Bartley, J., Burrell, A. M., Colman, D., Hart, K., Pointereau, P., and Silcock, P. (2008). Evaluation of the environmental impact of milk quotas. Technical report, European Commission, DG AGRI.
  7. Baptiste, L., Vincent, C., and Karine, D. (2012). Fin des quotas laitiers, contractualisation et stratégies productives: enseignements d’une modélisation bioéconomique. Productions Animales, 25:67–76. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20870/productions-animales.2012.25.1.3198
  8. Barbero, G., Bergmann, D., Bublot, G., Koester, U., Larsen, A., Mahé, L., Marsh, J., Ritson,
  9. C., Sarris, A., Tangermann, S., and Tarditi, S. (1984). The Siena memorandum on ‘The reform of the Common Agricultural Policy’. European Review of Agricultural Economics, 11:255–259. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/erae/11.2.255
  10. Bertolini, P. and Giovannetti, E. (2020). L’evoluzione del sistema locale del Parmigiano Reggiano. Working Paper, DEMB WORKING PAPER SERIES, Dipartimento di Economia Marco Biagi – Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia. https://doi.org/10.25341/11380_1212582.
  11. Boere, E., Peerlings, J., Reinhard, S., and Heijman, W. (2015). The dynamics of dairy land use change with respect to the milk quota regime. European Review of Agricultural Economics, 42(4):651–674. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/erae/jbv002
  12. Bouamra-Mechemache, Z., Jongeneel, R., and Réquillart, V. (2008). Impact of a gradual increase in milk quotas on the EU dairy sector. European Review of Agricultural Economics, 35:461–491. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/erae/jbn044
  13. Bórawski, P., Pawlewicz, A., Parzonko, A., Harper, J. K., and Holden, L. (2020). Factors shaping cow’s milk production in the EU. Sustainability, 12:420. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su12010420
  14. Campiotti, M. (2024). Costi, redditività, bilancio: per il Parmigiano Reggiano, cambia lo scenario di produzione del latte. Alleva-WEB.
  15. Carletti, E. and Giangiulio, D. (1998). Il problema delle quote latte: quale equilibrio tra regolamentazione e concorrenza? Meridiana, pages 233–262.
  16. Chiodini, G. (2016). La regolazione dell’offerta dei formaggi a denominazione di origine come strumento di politica agraria. Agriregionieuropa.
  17. CLAL (2025a). Italia: Produzioni di Formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano. Available at: https://www.clal.it/?section=produzioni_parmigiano. Last accessed: July 2025.
  18. CLAL (2025b). Prezzi del Latte crudo alla stalla, Lombardia. Available at: https://www.clal.it/index.php?section=latte_lombardia. Last accessed: October 2025.
  19. CLAL (2025c). Reggio Emilia - Prezzo del latte per la produzione di Parmigiano Reggiano. Available at: https://www.clal.it/index.php?section=latte_reggio_emilia. Last accessed: October 2025.
  20. Corbett, D. (1992). Milk quotas – benefit or constraint? why a Common Agricultural Policy? British Food Journal, 94(5):38–40. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/00070709210012777
  21. Cortignani, R. and Dono, G. (2020). Greening and legume-supported crop rotations: An impacts assessment on Italian arable farms. Science of the Total Environment, 734:139464. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139464
  22. Deserti, R. and Bertolini, C. (2021). La trasformazione della base allevatoriale: meno stalle, ma con struttura più omogenea e competitiva. Informatore Zootecnico.
  23. Donati, M., Bodini, D., Arfini, F., & Zezza, A. (2013). An integrated PMP model to assess the development of agro-energy crops and the effect on water requirements. Bio-Based and Applied Economics, 2(3):301–321. https://doi.org/10.13128/BAE-12987 DOI: https://doi.org/10.13128/BAE-12987
  24. Donati, M., Wilkinson, A., Veneziani, M., Antonioli, F., Arfini, F., Bodini, A., Amilien, V., Csillag, P., Ferrer-Pérez, H., Gkatsikos, A., Gauvrit, L., Gil, J., Hoang, V., Steinnes, K., Lila- vanichakul, A., Mattas, K., Napasintuwong, O., Nguyen, A., Nguyen, M., and Bellassen, V. (2020). Economic spill-over of food quality schemes on their territory. Journal of Agricultural Food Industrial Organization, 1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jafio-2019-0046
  25. Dongo, D. (2022). Parmigiano Reggiano, Grana Padano and production quotas. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade).
  26. European Commission (2013). CAP Reform: an explanation of the main elements. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/memo_13_621.
  27. Gigante, R., Arfini, F. and Donati, M. (2014). Assessment of CAP reform 2014-2020 in the Emilia-Romagna region. In: Constantin Zopounidis, Nikos Kalogeras, Konstadinos Mattas, Gert Dijk and George Baourakis (ed.), Agricultural Cooperative Management and Policy, edition 127, pages 371-388, Springer. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06635-6_20
  28. Jongeneel, R., Gonzalez-Martinez, A., Donnellan, T., Thorne, F., Dillon, E., and Loughrey, J. (2023). Research for Agri Committee – development of milk production in the EU after the end of milk quotas. Technical report, European Parliament, Policy Department for Structural and Cohesion Policies, Brussels.
  29. Lips, M. and Rieder, P. (2005). Abolition of Raw Milk Quota in the European Union: A CGE Analysis at the Member Country Level. Journal of Agricultural Economics, 56(1):1–17. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1477-9552.2005.tb00119.x
  30. Läpple, D., Carter, C. A., and Buckley, C. (2022). EU milk quota abolition, dairy expansion, and greenhouse gas emissions. Agricultural Economics, 53: 125–142. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/agec.12666
  31. Madau, F. A., Furesi, R., and Pulina, P. (2017). Technical efficiency and total factor productivity changes in European dairy farm sectors. Agric Econ, 5:17. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40100-017-0085-x
  32. Markus, K., Peter, W., Ignacio, P., Torbjörn, J., and Paolo, S. (2011). Economic and environmental impacts of milk quota reform in Europe. Journal of Policy Modeling, 33(1):29–52. Special Issue: Impact assessment of agri-food policies in Europe: Methods, tools and applications. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpolmod.2010.10.007
  33. Náglova, Z., Kotyza, P., Slaboch, J., Hálová, P., Czech, K., Wielechowski, M., and Cherevyk, D. (2021). Dairy processing industry in the European Union: Country-group clustering in pre- and post-milk quota abolishment periods. Journal of Central European Agriculture, 23. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5513/JCEA01/23.3.3503
  34. Oskam, A. J., Meester, G., and Silvis, H. J. (2010). EU policy for agriculture, food and rural areas. Wageningen Academic Publishers. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3920/978-90-8686-180-4
  35. Paris, Q. and Arfini, F. (2000). Frontier cost functions, self-selection, price risk, PMP, and Agenda 2000. Rivista di Economia Agraria, 211-242.
  36. Paris, Q. and Howitt, R. E. (1998). An analysis of ill-posed production problems using maximum entropy. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 80(1):124–138. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3180275
  37. Petit, M. (1987). Agricultural policy formation in the European community the birth of milk quotas and CAP reform. Elsevier.
  38. Philippidis, G. and Waschik, R. (2019). Melitz Meets Milk: The Impact of Quota Abolition on EU Dairy Export Competitiveness. Journal of Agricultural Economics, 70(1):44–61. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-9552.12276
  39. Pieri, R. and Rama, D. (2017). Dalla fine delle quote latte alle organizzazioni dei produttori: come cambia il settore lattiero-caseario in Italia? Agriregionieuropa.
  40. PRG (2014). Piano Regolazione Offerta del Parmigiano Reggiano Triennio 2014-2016 ai sensi del Reg. (UE) n. 1234/2007 e del D.M. 15164 del 12/10/2012.
  41. PRG (2022). Piano Regolazione Offerta del Parmigiano Reggiano Triennio 2023-2025 - Versione deliberata dal Consiglio di Amministrazione in data 26 gennaio 2022 Ai sensi del Reg. (UE) n. 1308/2013 e dei D.M. n. 15164 del 12 ottobre 2012, e n. 1813 del 15 febbraio 2019.
  42. PRG (2023). Alla ricerca della base genetica per la vacca da Parmigiano Reggiano: la genotipizzazione delle mille è cominciata. Alleva-WEB. Available at: https://allevaweb.it/la-genotipizzazione-delle-mille-e-cominciata/
  43. PRG (2025a). Disciplinare di Produzione della Denominazione di Origine Protetta “Parmigiano Reggiano”. Available at: https://backend.parmigianoreggiano.com/uploads/ Disciplinare_Parmigiano_Reggiano_1a92c5e19a.pdf. Last accessed: October 2025.
  44. PRG (2025b). Registro Quote Latte. Available at: https://registro.parmigianoreggiano. it/qlpr/home.do. Last accessed: October 2025.
  45. Solazzo, R., Donati, M., Arfini, F. and Petriccione, G. (2014). A PMP model for the impact assessment of the Common Agricultural Policy Reform 2014-2020 on the Italian Tomato Sector. New Medit. XIII. 9-19. DOI: https://doi.org/10.30682/nm2002g
  46. Solazzo, R., Donati, M., Tomasi, L. and Arfini, F. (2016). How effective is greening policy in reducing GHG emissions from agriculture? Evidence from Italy. Science of The Total Environment, 573:1115–1124. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.08.066

Most read articles by the same author(s)