The good news is that Inalca has withdrawn the redundancy notices for the 164 workers in Reggio Emilia who have been on layoff for over a year. The less positive development is that the meat processing group is now heading into a dispute with the Municipality of Reggio Emilia, where an arson attack on the night of 10–11 February 2025 destroyed the production plant (pictured), which will not reopen.
Inalca withdraws redundancies
At the regional negotiating table, an agreement was reached: Inalca has withdrawn the collective redundancy procedure and, at the same time, the extraordinary wage guarantee fund for the workers has been extended for a further six months. The final decision now rests with the Ministry of Labour. Employees will be able to choose between voluntary exit, to be communicated by 5 February, or redeployment within the Inalca–Cremonini Group, maintaining the same contractual level as their current employment agreement. The 164 workers formally remain surplus staff, as specified by Il Resto del Carlino, while it is now clear that the group will not reopen the plant destroyed by the fire.
The clash with the municipality
This decision may have been influenced by the growing conflict between the company and the local authority. What happened? Ten days after the fire, the Municipality of Reggio Emilia issued an order requiring the company to carry out remediation of the site. It subsequently sent several formal reminders, urging the company to comply with the measures imposed. Inalca is now seeking reimbursement from the municipality for costs incurred, amounting to EUR 760,000, arguing that these expenses were not its responsibility. On 29 October 2025, Inalca filed an appeal with the Administrative Court (TAR) of Parma against the remediation order issued by the Municipality of Reggio Emilia. The company maintains that, following the fire, Inalca’s lease automatically ceased and the property reverted to the owner. This was reported by Gazzetta di Reggio.
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