AVA-ASAJA calls for greater commitment from public authorities with innovation, during Hogan’s visit to his experimental farm
The Valencian Association of Farmers (AVA-ASAJA) has called for greater commitment of public authorities with innovation, key to the future of the agricultural sector, during the visit of the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Phil Hogan, to Sinyent, his farm of trials and agricultural experimentation. During the tour Hogan was accompanied, in addition to the dome of AVA-ASAJA, by the president of the European People's Group, Manfred Weber, by the spokesman of the PP in the EU Parliament, Esteban González Pons, by the president of the PPCV, Isabel Bonig, and by a large group of popular MEPs.
Rosario Martín opens as the first president of La Unión, coinciding with World Women’s Day
The Union appoints president and CEO to Rosario Martín Maldonado, the first in the history of this Alhóndiga, coinciding with the celebration of International Women's Day. Martín, who will occupy this post for the next five years, succeeds Gabriel Barranco, who has served as president of this company for 20 years and becomes its honorary president. Both belong to the founding group of the company, created in 1993. The relay, approved today, March 8th, by the Board of Directors, places for the first time a woman at the highest level of responsibility in the Almeria agrarian sector.
Levantine farmers demonstrate in Madrid to request water infrastructure and in defense of “the garden of Europe”
More than 15,000 farmers, irrigators, field workers, companies, citizens of Murcia, Almeria and Alicante, agglutinated in El Circulo del Agua, are demonstrating today, in Madrid, in demand for water and water infrastructure for the Levant, and in defense of its productive sector, based on the so-called "Huerta de Europa", key in the social and economic fabric of these regions. Under the slogan "In the Levant, without water: desert and unemployment Defend the garden of Europe!, the demonstration will begin at 12 noon on Calle Alcalá and will arrive at 13.30 at the headquarters of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment, where there will be a concentration that will conclude at 14.30. In parallel, also today, in the Plaza del Callao in Madrid, 25,000 kilos of fruit and vegetables will be distributed, from 10:30 am to 4:00 pm.
Strawberries producers from Spain, France and Italy demand greater control in the repackaging of the productions of other countries
The Hispano-Franco-Italian Contact Group, made up of representatives of strawberry producers from France, Italy and Spain - grouped together in the Producers and Exporters Association of Fresa de Huelva, Freshuelva, integrated in FEPEX, held a meeting end of February to analyze the current campaign and the status of joint work developed in the phytosanitary field. Thus, they have agreed to demand from the respective administrations a greater control of the re-packaging of strawberries from other countries - after highlighting that this fact is occurring with the Moroccan strawberry in Spain or with the German strawberry in France - as well as scrupulous compliance of phytosanitary regulations, guaranteeing consumer safety at all times.
Fashion watermelons advance their campaign
Since February 22nd, the first Fashion watermelons, coming from Senegal, are now available for consumption in the main markets. This campaign comes almost 15 days ahead of the 2017 and foresees an increase in production of between 2 and 3%.
Eurosemillas warns of the fraud of selling Tang Tang mandarins of other varieties
Following the complaint filed with the Directorate General of Consumer Affairs of the Generalitat Valenciana by La Unió de Llauradors against Aldi and Carrefour for advertising and labeling two different protected tangerines under the same name ('Tang Gold / Nadorcott' and 'Nadorcot / Tango', respectively ), Eurosemillas has contacted both chains. The French multinational is correcting the error in its points of sale and already offers its audience both varieties of tangerines in a differentiated way. The company expects that, in the near future, the second brand in question will proceed to do the same, avoiding that the consumer mistakenly believes that Tang Gold is the same variety as Nadorcott.
The apple and pear of Catalonia surpass the quotations of the past campaign, by the descent of production in Europe
The selling prices of the apple and pear are above the prices of last season, due to the productive decline experienced by pip fruit throughout Europe during the current season. Despite the optimistic figures and the correct valuation of the campaign, the Managing Director of Afrucat, Manel Simon, affirms that "we must not get distracted and trust, but we must maintain this fluidity of sales to eliminate camera stocks" .
Spain: AVA ASAJA warns that the agreement with Mercosur threatens the stability of the Valencian rice sector
The vice-president of the rice sector of COPA-COGECA -an entity that brings together the agricultural organizations and the European cooperatives- and leader of AVA-ASAJA, Miguel Minguet, has denounced in Brussels that among the proposals that are being debated these days, in the framework of the negotiations with the Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay), is the importation with a reduced tariff of 45,000 tons of rice. A concession to exports of rice from the territories of the aforementioned alliance, which would have very damaging effects on the European rice sector and, by extension, on the Spanish and the Valencian.
Chile: Exports of fresh fruit exceed 854,000 tons to date
The Association of Fruit Exporters of Chile AG (ASOEX) has recently presented the advance of fresh fruit exports so far in the 2017/18 fruit season. Thus, according to its president Ronald Bown, from September 1st to February 16th, Chile has sent 854,671 tons of fresh fruits to the world, a figure that turns out to be 5.35% less than the volumes sent to the same period last season.
Spain: horticultural exports rise 1% in 2017 to exceed € 12,700M
The Spanish export of fresh fruits and vegetables in 2017 increased by 1% compared to 2016, totaling 12,704 million euros. In volume, they registered an increase of 0.5%, standing at 12.6 million tons, according to data from the General Directorate of Customs, made public on February 21, not meeting the initial growth forecasts, due to the retreat of the months of November and December, also slowing down the growth rate in relation to 2016 and 2015.