The extreme heatwave of summer 2026 has hit Italy’s livestock farms hard, with talk of «a consequent reduction in milk production of around 10%», co-op association Confcooperative has warned through its dairy sector president, Alessandro Mocellin, International Dairy Magazine reports.
«We cannot recall a period with so many consecutive days of such high temperatures. The animals are no longer able to recover during the night; they remain in a state of constant stress and are beginning to show signs of illnesses that are not normally seen on farms», Mocellin said.
The consequences are already being felt. While June’s national production was broadly in line with the same month in 2025, in the first days of August Confcooperative reports «a fall in production of around 10% compared with the last week of July».
«This is a decline that is also being exacerbated by the growing difficulty in ensuring sufficient water for livestock farms, particularly in lowland areas and the Po Valley, where water scarcity has now become a structural emergency. The problems also extend to livestock feed: the forage harvest is below expectations and a deterioration in quality is also likely», Mocellin added.
Source: International Dairy Magazine
