A truckers’ protest halts the production of Italy’s famed buffalo mozzarella

ROME (AP) — A truckers’ protest in southern Italy has halted the making of the famed buffalo mozzarella, blocking an estimated 3 million euros in production in just 24 hours as the milk cannot reach dairies in the Naples region and the finished cheese cannot reach customers, an official said.

The weeklong strike by the truck drivers over the high cost of diesel driven up by the Iran war has also blocked deliveries of other basic goods to supermarkets and left gas pumps empty in much of southern Italy.

The disruption is particularly damaging to buffalo mozzarella because the production of the protected cheese brand depends on a tightly timed supply chain.

Buffaloes have to be milked regardless of whether dairies are operating, while production rules require that the milk of the water buffalos be turned into mozzarella within 60 hours of milking.

Pier Maria Saccani, director of the Consortium for the Protection of Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, said that about 1 million liters of buffalo milk produced in a single day couldn’t be turned into mozzarella because of the transport blockade. The consortium oversees production standards and protects the designation of origin of the cheese in Italy and abroad.

“Yesterday, no mozzarella was produced,” Saccani said, explaining it was a “3 million-euro block in 24 hours” — a loss of about 3.4 million dollars.

Farmers typically have only enough capacity to hold the fresh milk until dairy trucks collect it and cannot store large quantities for extended periods.

“So this blockade has obviously caused panic among farmers, who say, ‘Where are we going to put it?’” Saccani added.

The dairies making mozzarella face a similar problem — they cannot afford to accumulate a highly perishable product if trucks are unable to deliver it to customers.

Several dairies have remained closed as a result, Saccani said, describing the situation as a “complete production blockade.”

Some farmers have resorted to feeding part of the unused milk to their animals because they have nowhere to send it, Saccani said, adding that the transport disruption is also threatening supplies of animal feed and diesel needed to keep farms operating.

“It’s a very, very complex and delicate situation,” he said.

The blockade comes as milk producers and dairies are already confronting higher costs. Saccani said the consortium estimates production costs have risen about 30%, driven by increases in animal feed, diesel, energy, plastic packaging and transportation.

The increases have not been fully passed on to customers, he said, leaving producers to absorb much of the additional expense and cutting into profitability across the supply chain.

Buffalo mozzarella is an important industry in the Campania region, where the city of Naples is located, and neighboring areas of southern Italy.

Saccani said that in 2025, the production of Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP totaled just under 58,000 metric tons, with about 37% of production exported. France is its largest foreign market.

The Italian government led by Giorgia Meloni has called an extraordinary Cabinet meeting on Thursday to discuss possible aid measures for the transportation and agriculture sectors.