Alicante farmers demand shock plan for cherries and warn of critical situation in grain, honey and almonds

This was warned by the president of Asaja Alicante on Wednesday. José Vicente AndreuDuring his presentation, agricultural balance Prepared by the organization and giving special importance to the subject The critical situation experienced by products such as cherries, grain, honey production or almond industryHe demanded a complete change to the strategy being developed to combat the Xylella plague and prevent the destruction of thousands of trees.

“After emphasizing that Climate changes will be a trend“in the years to come and remember this: Segura reservoirs are at only 19.21% of their capacity – the lowest figure in the last decade – Andreu insisted that this situation must be stopped interruptions in transfer He wanted to ensure the future of the Alicante countryside and wanted to be optimistic. “The game is never lost.“, he assured Objections to the Supreme Court He is against the new Júcar basin plan, which reduces the amount that can be transferred by increasing the ecological flow of the river. He therefore described the Madrid Community’s participation in these resources as “very positive”.

Those responsible for Asaja Alicante in the presentation of the agricultural balance. Information

In this sense, the president of Asaja Alicante did not hesitate to attribute last summer’s melon shortage to the decision of many producers to plant less land, given the uncertainty about available water. something that happens at the same time artichoke10% less area is planted for the next campaign, which is expected to result in a 25% reduction in harvest due to weather conditions. “This is the future that awaits us if there is no success from the transfer,” he assured.

crops

Beyond the transfer, the organization also drew attention to the situation experienced by some crops: cerealssuffering 90% harvest loss In l’Alcoià, which reached 100% on Castalla and Onil’s terms, as Asaja Alicante’s technical secretary warned, Ramón Espinosa. And the next campaign doesn’t look any better. “Farmers were waiting for the rain to come and finally They planted a month later than normal and when the soil was very dry“, warned.

But the most critical situation is this: Cherryaccumulated four years with almost no productionn, which causes a large number of parcels to be abandoned. Thus, only 600,000 kilos of a potential production of more than eight million were collected this year, according to Espinosa. They express a need from the organization collision plan with three important precautions. would be the first direct aid for farmers, 3,000 euros for farms smaller than two hectares; 4,000 for ages 2 to 4; and 850 euros per hectare for those exceeding this size. Castellón also calls for a plan similar to the one the ceramics industry has with the Valencian Financial Institute. refinancing debts from the producers; and finally, a recovery agricultural insuranceDue to the disasters in recent years, their prices have increased rapidly and their guarantees have been cut.

In the case of lemonHe condemned that the sector charges below-cost prices to producers who do not comply with the Food Chain Law, for which they demand the authorities to take action.

Cherry field affected by hail. Juani Ruz

José Vicente Andreu also demanded from the new presidents of the Generalitat a change in the strategy followed in the fight against the epidemic. xylellaaffecting almond trees. “We’ve been trying to eradicate xylella for years and “The only thing that has been achieved is the elimination of almond cultivation.”warned that thousands of trees would be cut down if they failed to stop the spread of this bacteria. “We must find a new strategy to ensure the survival of the mountain,” he insisted.

Less livestock farming

On the other hand, the livestock manager of the organization, Juan Luis GimenoPointing out that drought also affects this sector by reducing the available pasture areas, “Disastrous” situation for sheep and goat herds. In this sense, he underlined that Alicante is one of the largest goat milk producers, with a volume exceeding the production of wine and oil.

In the same vein, another segment going through a non-sensitive period is beekeeping As Asaja Alicante points out, There was a decrease of up to 60% in honey production Due to drought and harmful insects, the number of bees in honeycombs in the province has decreased by up to 40 percent. According to José Vicente Andreu, this situation is getting worse. “pinyolà” decree This causes beehives to move away from citrus fields. A regulation that has been in effect for 30 years and which Andreu is demanding be changed.

Finally, the president of Wine DO, José Juan ReusHe emphasized that good progress was made in the commercialization of Alicante wines in the first half of the year. Exports increased by more than 6 percent and almost 3% of its global sales. Of course, it also highlighted the problems they face due to crop abandonment, solar power plants’ competition for the best land and, above all, the consequences of drought. They reduced the last harvest from 26 million kilos to 18.5 million kilos.

President of Asaja, who wanted to make an optimistic touch despite all these problems, reminded that despite everything, agriculture is one of the main export items of the province and Spain, and drew attention to the cultivation of crops such as Vinalopó grapes and Mollar grapes. Good harvest of the pomegranate, loquat, citrus or olive sector.