Balearic farmers join Madrid tractor protest over costs

High costs and tight margins: farmers from the Balearic Islands are heading to Madrid on Wednesday to join a tractor protest demanding help for the sector. A delegation from the Balearic branch of farmers’ association Asaja will join farmers and livestock keepers from across Spain. The protest will end outside Spain’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

Asaja has called the protest alongside the Coordinator of Farmers’ and Livestock Breeders’ Organisations and Unión de Uniones. Joan Company, president of Asaja Baleares, says producing food on the islands costs more, making it harder for farms to compete. Their margins, he says, are getting tighter.

The groups want a lower, stable tax rate on agricultural diesel and help with higher bills for fertiliser, energy and animal feed. They also want the European Union’s next Common Agricultural Policy to keep its own adequate budget.

They are calling for prices that cover production costs and for Spain’s food supply chain law to be enforced. They want imports, particularly from Mercosur and Morocco, to meet the same requirements as European products, and less paperwork so farmers can spend more time on their farms. Company says they are not asking for privileges: they want to be able to live from their work.

Topics: Protests · Agriculture

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com