The blockade and attacks on Spanish trucks in France are already causing negative, even severe, economic effects for the province of Alicante. Carriers have faced rising costs and longer wait times from the outset. Industry insiders estimate losses at around two million euros in the seven days of protests, as transportation times to supply goods have doubled. Agriculture, a cornerstone of the region, is also hit hard; shipments of fruit and vegetables to Europe, especially citrus, have fallen by about 50 percent as customers cancel orders due to delays.
The French farmers’ protests, which involved indiscriminate road closures, disrupted logistics and transport in the initial days. As the conflict persisted, the economic toll grew larger. The Alicante Transport Federation (Fetrama) reports that nearly a thousand trucks crossing France are encountering delays that double the usual transit times.
Antonio Gabaldón, secretary general of Fetrama, notes, “Services that used to be completed in four days now take an average of eight. If you consider that, a truck-day costs 600 euros.” He warns that losses are already substantial, and these figures reflect only lost profits. The damage to products themselves would add to the financial impact.
Fruit and vegetable exporters are urging France to guarantee the free movement of trucks. The Fetrama representative explains that road conditions have shifted, with protests centered around the outskirts of Paris in recent hours. Although nationwide repression may be less intense outside the capital, trucks are forced to reroute via secondary roads, causing ongoing delays and increased fuel and handling costs.
The agricultural sector continues to suffer because fields have alternated between work and stoppages since the dispute began, leaving harvests partially paralyzed. On a recent Wednesday, producers faced a growing sense of desperation as crops piled up in warehouses. José Vicente Andreu, president of Asaja Alicante, describes how delays in shipments and broader crises are filling the export warehouses and triggering order cancellations. In his view, exports have fallen by nearly half, and there is little hope of compensating for those lost sales in the near term.
Andreu also directs sharp criticism toward the French farming community, arguing that some attempts to frame the protests as a European agricultural policy critique actually amount to an attack on Spanish products. He laments the situation, describing it as happening with the tolerance of authorities in the neighboring country.