6 days ago
Spanish farmers protest over grain imports and fertiliser tariffs
Hundreds of Spanish farmers have been protesting in Madrid today (Wednesday, June 4) with the message that 'the grains sector has had enough'.
Convened by farmer organisations, ASAJA, COAG, and UPA, the protestors gathered outside the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food to denounce the 'critical situation' facing grain farming in Spain and demand immediate government action.
The rally followed months of a profitability crisis exacerbated by high production costs, plummeting prices, and unfair competition from massive imports, according to the three organisations.
During the event, the heads of ASAJA, COAG, and UPA highlighted the three main demands the sector is making to the ministry:
Direct aid to farmers for the high cost of fertilisers , which in many cases has doubled their spending in recent seasons;
, which in many cases has doubled their spending in recent seasons; Immediate elimination of tariffs on fertiliser imports , which artificially raise costs for Spanish agriculture while exempting other sectors;
, which artificially raise costs for Spanish agriculture while exempting other sectors; Real control of grain imports, giving priority to domestic production over the massive entry of grain from third countries without the same controls or standards.
President of ASAJA, Pedro Barato said (translated): 'Today, what is at stake is not only the income of farmers, but the very survival of thousands of cereal farms.
'We cannot allow the sector to continue being forced to operate at a loss, with prices plummeting below €200/t and costs exceeding €800/ha.
'What we are calling for are concrete, immediate, and fully implementable measures: direct aid on fertiliser bills; an end to absurd tariffs; and the [defence] of Spanish production once and for all against unfair competition.'
Crowds gather in Madrid for the farmer protest. Image source: UPA X
For his part, head of the grain sector of COAG's Executive Committee, Javier Fatas emphasised that (translated) 'today, grain prices in our fields are not decided in Valladolid or Zaragoza; they are decided in offices thousands of kilometers away, where a click from a broker is worth more than an entire campaign of work'.
'This financial speculation on commodities like wheat or barley is distorting the global market, and the farmer is the weakest link in the chain. And the result? Domestic wheat at bargain prices.
'Today, in the fields, prices are below €220/t, when it costs more than €250 to produce,' he added.
Secretary of Agriculture of the UPA (United Agricultural Party), Ignacio Huertas, has described the situation of the grain sector as 'critical'.
Secretary of Agriculture of the UPA (United Agricultural Party), Ignacio Huertas. Image source: UPA X
'We have ruinous prices and skyrocketing production costs, neither of which is the responsibility of farmers,' he said (translated).
'We suffer from speculation by wholesalers and intermediaries and the consequences of massive wheat imports from Ukraine.
'Production costs have risen 30% in recent years, and may rise even further due to the imposition of tariffs on Russian fertilisers.'
The three organisations have warned that if solutions are not adopted soon, the protests will continue and spread to all producing territories, as well as to Brussels, the seat of the European institutions.
'Without grain producers, there is no Spanish grain. And without domestic grain, the shopping basket will depend on third countries and speculative markets, which will not only increase prices for consumers but also jeopardise the quality and food safety standards currently guaranteed by domestic production,' the organisers stated.
