Contract Law in the Agri-Food Supply Chain

In Italy, contract law in the agri-food chain is regulated by law 27/2012 art. 62. The law polices Business-to-Business (“B2B”) contracts with the specific purpose of protecting producers. The 2012 law was enacted after an intense debate within the European Union (EU), following the 2008 crisis that saw a rise in agri-food prices. The law introduces a form of “commercial ethics” into the agri-food chain, as it defines and prohibits unfair business practices in this field. In 2019, the EU approved Directive EU 2019/633 that prohibits in every Member State unfair business practices that are harmful to producers. The paper will trace the interplay between national and European legislation on unfair trade practices in the agri-food supply chain in order to ascertain if they are adequate.