ASAJA Alicante Awards Spotlight 2022 Winners and Sector Challenges

ASAJA Alicante marks the 13th edition of its 2022 Awards this Friday, honoring agricultural farms across Alicante. The event emphasizes renewing generations, elevating quality, promoting sustainability, ensuring equity, and advocating for the sector. Presented during the Alicantina Agricultural Night, this annual celebration organized by ASAJA Alicante underscores the province’s crucial agricultural identity and the enduring value of its farming communities.

In 2022, Alicante’s agricultural sector faced a string of challenges that tested its resilience: rising production costs that squeezed margins; the lingering effects of the pandemic; the Vall d’Ebo wildfire that devastated thousands of cultivated plots and displaced countless dreams; risks to livestock and especially Valencian professional beekeeping; long-standing bans on certain insecticides and water policies; the influx of fruit from abroad; and the controversial decision to discontinue the Tagus Segura Transfer, a move ASAJA Alicante deems unilateral and political, lacking scientific or technical justification. These factors collectively strained farms, farms’ workers, and the broader agro-food chain across the region [Source: ASAJA Alicante].

Officials and assistants

The ceremony gathered leading figures, including the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development, Climate Emergency and Ecological Transition, Isaura Navarro; the regional director of the Ministry of Agriculture, Mari Carmen Catalá; the regional Minister of Agriculture, Roger Llanes; Deputy for Public Works, Local Development, Productive Sectors and Employment, Sebastián Cañadas; the Tajo-Segura representation by Lucas Jiménez; and the president of the Aqueduct Central Irrigators’ Association. The event brought together a broad cross-section of agricultural organizations, provincial irrigation communities, local authorities, agri-food business leaders, and roughly 350 delegates comprising farmers and ranchers from ASAJA Alicante, all gathered in a shared moment of recognition and dialogue with regional policy makers [Source: ASAJA Alicante].

AWARD-WINNING

RURAL WOMAN AWARD: Finca la Maye

• RURAL WOMEN AWARD 2022: La Maye Mansion. Two young sisters swapped city life a decade ago for the family farm, building vegetable gardens, planting fruit trees, and embracing livestock farming. Their daily work is showcased through social media channels with a growing following, as depopulation and a lack of intergenerational support threaten Alicante’s agricultural landscape. Their story highlights perseverance and the value of rural entrepreneurship in sustaining local food production [Source: ASAJA Alicante].

YOUNG FARMERS AWARD: Vicente Llodrá Ruz

• YOUNG FARMERS AWARD 2022: VICENT LLODRÁ RUZ. A five-year journey has seen a Cocentaina-born farmer relocate to the grandfather’s town of Beniaia to devote himself fully to land, farms, and family legacy. The Vall d’Ebo fire, however, scorched 90% of 17 hectares of cherry and olive trees, testing his resolve and reminding the region of the fragility of even long-standing family enterprises [Source: ASAJA Alicante].

AGRICULTURE-FOOD QUALITY AND SUSTAINABILITY AWARD: Cooperativa Agrícola Católica de Cocentaina

• 2022 AGRICULTURE-FOOD QUALITY AND SUSTAINABILITY AWARD: Cocentaina Catholic Agricultural Cooperative. The cooperative pursues constant innovation to reach consumers and deliver memorable experiences with products. Their high-quality extra virgin olive oil Oli El Comtat exemplifies a careful blend of modern extraction methods and ancestral olive care traditions, reflecting a commitment to sustainable practices and product excellence [Source: ASAJA Alicante].

PROFESSIONAL FARMERS AWARD: Roque Bru

• PROFESSIONAL FARMERS AWARD 2022: Roque Luis Bru Bonet. Roque represents the evolution from traditional farming to agricultural entrepreneurship. Holding an economics degree, he manages a fruit-dense farm of more than 75 hectares, standing out as a leading figure in the Elche countryside and illustrating how passion, education, and business acumen can drive rural development [Source: ASAJA Alicante].

LIVESTOCK AWARD: MeLECA

• LIVESTOCK AWARD 2022: Honey and Natural Products, MeLECA. This recognition honors Valencia’s beekeeping families facing critical times. The MeLECA group from Adsubia embodies family unity, courage, and resilience, serving as a beacon for the sector while highlighting the importance of pollinators in sustainable farming [Source: ASAJA Alicante].