The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Isabel García Tejerina, said that the Government has committed from the outset by the internationalization of the agricultural sector and, as a result of this, has made Spain is the 8th largest exporter of agricultural products The world, with annual transactions of 40,830 million euros, representing 17% of total foreign trade. He also said that Spain is the third largest exporter of fruits and vegetables and leader in organic production.
García Tejerina was speaking this morning during the opening of the 61st edition of the Agricultural Fair of Sant Miquel (National Exhibition of Agricultural Machinery) and the 30th edition of Eurofruit (Professional Exhibition for Fruit Industry ).
The Minister of Agriculture stressed that thanks to the commitment of the central government by the sector in recent months have opened new markets for pork products, such as South Korea, Taiwan or Hong Kong. It has also announced that in the coming months the Spanish dairy farmers will receive about 300 million euros between European and state aid. Finally, García Tejerina has asked both farmers and ranchers as the different administrations, work together to make the agricultural sector more competitive and even more professional and more quality products are present worldwide.
For his part, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, Food and Natural Environment of the Generalitat, Jordi Ciuraneta, has asked the central government’s help to find new markets for pigmeat sectors and sweet fruit and deplored that actions taken by the Government in this regard have not prospered by the lack of support from Madrid. He has also negatively assessed the late payment of compensatory funds for disadvantaged agricultural areas and the fact that the Catalan livestock is being hard hit by the removal of milk quotas, and called for a distribution of EU funds evenly. The Minister also stressed the importance of the agricultural fair of Sant Miquel, which considers it a meeting point of the sector to enjoy the latest news and business opportunities and, moreover, it stressed that s the Lleida Catalonia leading sectors of pork, chicken, fresh fruit and fodder.
The president of the council of Lleida, Joan Reñé, highlighted the potential of the food industry in the Lands of Lleida, representing 65% of exports Lleida, with a volume of 15 million tonnes exported a year. However, he complained that the demarcation of Lleida is poorly communicated by the lack of state investment in roads and railways that connect the point of production to the port of Tarragona, the door to natural outlet of the food being ‘exported.
In the same vein said the mayor of Lleida, Angel Ros, who has claimed Lleida connection with the Mediterranean railway corridors, an infrastructure that will be key for the future development of the food economy of the province of Lleida. Ros has also called for a stronger agriculture and livestock bet and has asked the central government and the Generalitat of Catalonia expedite expert opinions in the case of hail or strong winds and become firm policies to correct the negative effects on the fruit market and avoid the low current sales prices.
