While most crops have seen their fields reduced by up to 20% due to drought, makers ecological agriculture Sigh with limited relaxation thanks to “better water management” and although they suffer from a lack of rain, they do so to a lesser extent.
The lack of water is a problem that “affects everyone equally”, but when it comes to dealing with it, organically produced farmers have an advantage because “all crops have mitigation systems and water consumption reduction”.
For Álvaro Barrera, president of the Spanish Association of Organic Production Professionals (Ecovalia), the key feature of this type of farming is that the soil can retain this liquid, thanks to its own structure.
Barrera illustrates the difference between the two types with the image of a person who needs a glass of water after eating something very spicy but does not have it, and on another plane, a person in the same situation. has water to suppress this feeling.
Nitrogenous compounds damaging the soil
The first would be traditional agriculture, as Barrera explained in his remarks to Efeagro. It causes your soil to burn during drought periods due to nitrogen compounds and chemicals provided by plant health sources. and the plant has no water source.
In its place, In the case of organic farming, crops can “hold” that “glass of water” to suppress the heat, because they lack the previous substances that cause blockage in the absorption of water.
The lack of water as well as other climatic negativities such as hail caused the prices of crops such as melons and watermelons, onions and tomatoes to increase and their cultivation decreased.
This, in turn, affects the final price for the consumer, as the cost of foods in the shopping cart, especially fruits and vegetables, increases.
Organic farming is not exempt from these economic ups and downs, since input prices also increase and affect all products; But in the Ecovalia president’s view, factors such as more “farm-to-table” distribution mitigate this problem.
But the consumer did not stop buying such a product: according to Ecovalia data, the total average expenditure per capita was 60 euros per person per year, 53.20 of which corresponds to what Spaniards spend at home.
Organic farming already competes with conventional farming
Roberto Ruiz, organic production research technician at the Basque Agricultural Research Institute (Neiker), the ability of organic farming to “compete” with conventional farming.
It emphasizes traditional “does not reach expected performance” It is derived from inputs provided and therefore “production is more expensive or generally equivalent to organic farming.”
The focus is on the reservoirs’ capacity to provide water for both domestic consumption and agriculture, such as the situation where the country is currently experiencing water reserves at 48.2% and has been declining for the sixth week in a row.
The manager of Ecovalia warns about this “the presence of organophosphorus, that is, the limits of these active substances are above that allowed for human consumption” and “the little water that exists is the water that doesn’t exist.”
Phytosanitary products found in conventional agriculture reach the reservoirs by being washed with rains and cause the concentration of these substances to increase as there is less stored water.
Spending on organic farming continues to rise
In 2022, Spaniards spent an average of 60 euros on organic products both inside and outside the home, this represents an increase of 3.1% and almost two euros over the previous year, when 58.15 euros were spent.
According to the latest data from Ecovalia, Organic consumption has increased by 45 percent in the last three years after post-pandemic stability.
In addition, in 2022, 64% of the organic basket in Spain will be made of organic products of plant origin, mainly fruit (14%), vegetables (10%), and 36% of animal origin, mostly meat (27%). consisted of products. %).
There are 2.64 million hectares of certified organic areas in Spain, a growth of 26.6% in the last five years.
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