The Spanish Cotton Interprofessional is officially presented

The Cajasol Foundation hosted last February 14 the celebration of the III Forum “The Spanish Cotton Sector. Presente y Fututo “, where the Spanish Interprofessional was presented officially after recognition at the BOJA on December 28, 2018.

By Marga Lopez

Before starting to take their first steps, cotton producers and industrialists have to know and reflect on what should be the objectives of their Interprofessional, the work that can develop, the goals that can be established in different areas and the human team that needs . This has been the objective of the III Forum “The Spanish Cotton Sector. Presente y Futuro “, held at the Cajasol Foundation (Seville) on February 14, exceeding the capacity forecast.

The event, led by agri-food journalist Elisa Plumed, began with the presentation of the General Secretary of Agriculture of the Junta de Andalucía, Vicente Pérez, who thus also made his position official, ratified only a few days before.

The situation of the CAP and the reform that is currently being debated within the European Commission was the first aspect addressed in this event. Esperanza de Orellana, General Director of Productions and Agricultural Markets of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, made a clear statement of the changes that can be made, making it clear that it is more of a reform than in the background, In the future PAC, the Member States will define their own Strategic Plans. “I refuse to accept that the agrarian activity is outdated. It is thriving and with a promising future, which is why we need a strong CAP, “said Orellana.

Special interest awakened the joint presentation of the Interprofessional of the Cotton of Greece and Spain. On the part of the Hellenic association, Vassilis A. Markou, its president, outlined the projects in which it is already working, such as the establishment of a production protocol, research and development, and plans to publicize the sector among the population.

Dimas Rizzo, president of the Spanish Cotton Interprofessional, explained why and why this Association has been created: “It was necessary to have a permanent work space, to create European alliances, to develop R & D, promotion, actions that separately We could not carry it out, “said Rizzo, who highlighted what has already been created by the European Cotton Alliance, led by Greece and Spain, whose objective is to create a common brand that defends the production methods that are carried out. The quality of the product and, above all, it is based on a crop without the presence of genetically modified organisms. “This is one of the added values ​​we must show the final consumer,” he added.

In this sense, Antonios Siarkos, Vice President of the Association of Dismantlers of Greece has developed the contents of the European Cotton Alliance, and the projects that are framed within it. “The objective is to create the bases to be able to identify the European cotton in the markets as fiber of quality in front of third parties”, Siarkos pointed out.

To talk about prices and future markets, was attended by Alberto Durbán, Pte. Of the National Cotton Center, who made a clear statement on the formation of prices, shelling out the global context and optimistic forecasts for this sector. “With the ecological boom, the demand for cotton is rising compared to other types of synthetic fibers,” Durbán confirmed.

Finally, in a dynamic presentation format, the Lemon and Grapefruit Interprofessionals (AILIMPO), the Table Olive (INTERACEITUNA) and the Olive Orujo Oil (ORIVA), presented their trajectories, the reasons that led to their creation , and the actions that have been taking, establishing the three as valid interlocutors before national and European institutions and clients. In all of them, promotion is a key issue, and for this purpose they allocate large budget items, as well as research and information gathering.

The Pte. Of the Interprofessional of Cotton, Dimas Rizzo took charge of all this, in charge of closing the event, thanking the entire sector for their participation and above all their commitment to this project of union and future.