The new rules adopted on 13th March by the European Commission will entail less bureaucracy and more financial aid in times of crisis for the European Fruit and Vegetable Producers Organizations (OPFHs).
On March 10th, the University Expert Course on Agro-food Communication, organized by the Association of Spanish Agro-Food Journalists (APAE) and the University of San Jorge (USJ), began its journey. A course supported by organizations such as Yara, AEPLA, Bayer CropScience, Foro Interalimentario and Cajamar, and whose objective is to train future journalists, improve training in the profession and help companies in the agri-food sector to exercise Journalism and Communication in an effective way.
The European Commission recently published in the Official Journal of the European Union (DOUE) implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/385 approving the change of name of the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) Ham of Huelva which, finally, it is registered as Denomination of Origin Protected (PDO) Jabugo. This Regulation shall enter into force on the 20th day following its publication and shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
The Agricultural Professional Organizations (OPAs) at national and general level ASAJA and UPA, Agro-alimentary Cooperatives of Spain, the Spanish Federation of Producers Exporters of Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers and Living Plants (FEPEX) and the Spanish Association of Conservation Agriculture / Soils Living (AEAC.SV), together with representatives of thousands of farmers, farmers, cooperatives, entrepreneurs and exporters of the Spanish agricultural sector, have formed the alliance ALAS – Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, to express support for the model of agriculture Sustainable intensification of production and renewal of the authorization of glyphosate for the maximum period authorized in Community regulations, justified by scientific criteria regarding their safety and use, environmental and economic and productive criteria.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of El Salvador and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) have signed an agreement to revive coffee cultivation in this country. This agreement, signed by IICA Director General Víctor M. Villalobos and the Minister of Agriculture of Livestock and President of the National Center for Agricultural and Forestry Technology (CENTA), Orestes Ortez, will serve to strengthen and improve the sustainability and competitiveness of the coffee chain.
During the last meeting held in Agen (France) by the Spanish-French-Italian Strawberry Contact Group, composed of representatives of the French and Italian producers as well as of Spain grouped together in the Association of Strawberry Producers and Exporters from Huelva( FRESHUELVA), integrated in FEPEX, have analyzed the forecasts for the current campaign, predicting a production similar to that of 2016, but of better quality. This contact has also served to further progress in phytosanitary matters.
The company from Alicante, Grupo Agrotecnología, present in more than 30 countries, continues to advance its commitment to international expansion, with the recent opening of its new headquarters in Peru. With this new subsidiary, which joins those already opened in Mexico and Chile, Grupo Agrotecnología seeks to consolidate itself in new markets and strengthen its international structure and presence in South America, a market in which it aspires to become a clear reference in the sector of the Biostimulants and biopesticides.
Nearly two hundred professionals of the sector have participated in the Expoliva Dialogue “Extra virgin olive oil, an unusual experience for our senses”. The Director of Industries and Agro-Food Chain of the Regional Ministry of Agriculture of the Junta de Andalucía, Rosa Isabel Rios, has inaugurated the third of these important appointments that are being made prior to the “Expoliva 2017” celebration.
Coinciding with the commemoration of Women’s Day, in ECA we want to claim the role and contribution of rural women professionals through this interview with Jerónima Bonafé, Secretary of the Governing Council of Agro-food Cooperatives of Spain, and President of Agro Cooperatives Of the Balearic Islands. With her, a clear example of a woman with a voice and a capacity for decision, in an environment where male leadership still prevails, we talk about issues such as the still low visibility of women in the governing bodies of cooperatives and organizations in the agricultural sector and, both, the need to continue working for a greater role of rural women.
Article on Xylella Fastidiosa and its current situation in the EU, developed for ECA by a research team of the Institute of Sustainable Agriculture, attached to the Higher Council of Scientific Research (CSIC).
