EU member state. Compliance scores reflect the regulatory advantages of EU single market membership and are not directly comparable to non-EU sourcing countries.
weighted score 2.1 · nine dimensions
Country Risk Profile
Italy
Sourcing risk, regulatory exposure and audit intelligence for Italy-origin supply chains.
Forced & child labour
3
Caporalato forced labour in southern agriculture (~420,000 exploited workers per FLAI-CGIL). GRETA 2024 urged stronger action. New caporalato residence permit Nov 2025.
Worker rights & FOA
2
ILO conventions ratified. ITUC dropped from 1 to 2 in 2025. Strong union tradition in industrial North but enforcement gaps in southern informal economy.
OHS & audit transparency
2
EU-harmonised OHS standards. Workplace fatalities above EU average, concentrated in construction and agriculture. Inspection capacity stretched in southern regions.
Food & product safety
2
Strong food safety culture. EFSA headquartered in Parma. Moderate RASFF alert rate. DOP/IGP system provides traceability for protected products.
Environmental & regulatory
2
EU environmental acquis implemented. Illegal waste dumping (Terra dei Fuochi) remains a concern in Campania. EUDR applies to domestic olive oil and wood.
Governance & anti-corruption
4
TI CPI 2025: ~56/100. Corruption probes ongoing (Koldo case spillover). Southern organised crime (Ndrangheta, Camorra) infiltrates public procurement. ANAC active but under-resourced.
Tariff & preferential access
1
Full EU single market access. No tariffs on intra-EU trade. EU FTA network provides preferential access to 70+ countries.
Non-tariff barriers
1
Harmonised EU product standards. CE marking. Mutual recognition. No additional non-tariff barriers for intra-EU trade.
Supply chain traceability
2
Strong traceability in DOP/IGP food chains. Textile supply chain (Prato district) has documented opacity with subcontracting to informal workshops.
Labour & Social Risk
Labour & Social Risk
- Forced labour risk
- Caporalato (illegal gangmaster system) exploits an estimated 420,000 workers in southern Italian agriculture per FLAI-CGIL. Sectors affected include tomato harvesting, citrus picking, and greenhouse agriculture in Puglia, Calabria, and Campania.
- GRETA assessment
- Council of Europe GRETA 2024 report urged Italy to strengthen action against trafficking and forced labour. New caporalato residence permit introduced November 2025 to protect victims who report exploitation.
- ITUC rating
- ITUC dropped Italy from 1 to 2 in 2025, citing weakened enforcement in agricultural labour inspections and restrictions on union access to migrant worker camps.
- ILO conventions
- All eight fundamental ILO conventions ratified. Freedom of association and collective bargaining legally protected, though enforcement gaps exist in southern informal economy.
- ILAB status
- No current ILAB listings for Italy, though caporalato conditions in agriculture meet several forced labour indicators under ILO definition.
EU Regulatory Exposure
EU Regulatory Exposure
- Single market
- Full EU single market membership. No tariffs on intra-EU trade. Harmonised product standards (CE marking). Mutual recognition of conformity assessment.
- EUDR exposure
- As an EU member state, Italian exporters operate under the same EUDR framework. Domestic olive oil and wood products subject to the regulation.
- EU Forced Labour Regulation
- Regulation (EU) 2024/3015 applies from December 2027. Southern Italian agricultural supply chains may face scrutiny under Article 5 investigations given documented caporalato conditions.
- CBAM
- Not applicable to intra-EU trade. Italian steel and aluminium producers exporting outside the EU may face CBAM-equivalent measures.
Logistics & Supply Chain
Logistics & Supply Chain
- Primary corridors
- Intra-EU road and rail via Brenner Pass (Austria), Frejus Tunnel (France). Genoa and Trieste for Mediterranean maritime. Milan Malpensa for air freight.
- Key infrastructure
- Autostrada network extensive in the North. Southern infrastructure weaker. Genoa is Italy's largest container port. Rail freight improving with NRRP investment.
- Transit time to EU buyers
- 1-3 days road freight to Central and Northern Europe. Longer for southern Italian origins due to infrastructure gaps.
- Scope 3 relevance
- Intra-EU sourcing from Italy generates substantially lower transport emissions than intercontinental alternatives. Southern origins add modest additional road freight.