ROME - Farmers throughout Italy have blocked numerous roads to protest fuel prices, competition from non-EU markets and EU regulations on uncultivated land, amongst other reasons, police said.

 Tractors have blocked multiple roads across Italy. In Brescia, farmers blocked the motorway tollbooth for an hour on Wed/tues. In Udine at least 70 tractors came from across the Friuli region on Mon. 29 to block the tollbooths and on Wed. 31, at least 30 tractors continuously drove around a roundabout on the A1.

 Farmers in Tuscany are in the middle of a five-day protest, blocking another tollbooth, with protestors staying on the site overnight.  The protests have also spread to the ports in Sardinia, with protestors parking tractors in front of the industrial ports of Oristano and Cagliari.

 Italian border force police remain on high alert at the French-Italian border between Menton and Ventimiglia, as the French police warned the French farmers’ protests were likely to spill over into Italy. In Val d’Aosta, also on the French border, a two-day protest has been planned for Wed. 7 Feb to Fri. 9 Feb.

 Daniel Calvini, a farmer from Abruzzo, said “we are in a disaster”, citing “taxes” and “international agreements” as the reason for protests. In Tuscany, farmers hit out saying “agriculture is dying.”

 This comes as farmers continue to protest across Europe.

 khg