Intesa Sanpaolo: €1.5bn to boost Italy’s dairy supply chain
22 October 2025
Intesa Sanpaolo is supporting investment in Italy’s agri-food sector with the allocation of €1.5 billion in new credit to the dairy supply chain, a flagship of Italy’s food excellence.
This initiative adds to the €10 billion already earmarked for agri-food supply chains, as part of the Group’s €410 billion plan supporting Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).
Key areas of investment identified to strengthen businesses in the sector include:
- International expansion, to boost the global presence of Italian food production
- Business growth, through aggregation and partnership projects involving producers, cooperatives and processing companies
- Technological innovation and energy efficiency, with new processing facilities, digital traceability systems and solutions that reduce water and energy consumption
- Enhancing quality and business continuity, to ensure product distinctiveness, certified origin and protection of PDO status
considering that risk management and sustainable innovation are essential to maintain the global prestige of Italian food products.
The importance of Italy’s dairy sector
With a production value of nearly €28 billion, Italy ranks third in Europe after France and Germany.
With 57 certified PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI cheeses (Protected Geographical Indication), Italy and France lead Europe in dairy quality.
The sector employs 44,000 people in Italy and includes 3,400 active businesses, accounting for 9.7% of total employment in the national food and beverage industry.
In 2024, dairy products and cheeses generated €6.3 billion in exports, making the sector Italy’s third largest in agri-food exports — after wine, pasta and baked goods.
Intesa Sanpaolo’s Agribusiness Department
The Agribusiness Department of Intesa Sanpaolo is dedicated to businesses operating in the agricultural sector. It comprises:
- 250 operating points, including 95 specialised branches
- approximately 1,100 professionals
- 80,000 clients
The Bank also offers solutions such as the revolving pledge on PDO agri-food products, extended to include the dairy supply chain.
The new credit initiative was announced in Brescia during the second Agri-talk event, part of a series of regional meetings across Italy. The first stage, in Florence, focused on the wine sector, and a third stage dedicated to the fruit and vegetable supply chain is scheduled for December in Milan.
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Last updated 27 October 2025 at 13:18:22
