The meeting, which will be held at the ministry’s headquarters, will address the situation in international markets and the impact of the current geopolitical context on energy prices and its repercussions for the primary sector.
PLANAS CALLS FARMERS AFTER PROTEST PLANS ANNOUNCED
The invitation became known hours after Spain’s three main professional farm organizations —Asaja, COAG and UPA— announced plans for protests across the country in the coming weeks against the “unaffordable rise” in diesel prices, which have increased by more than 45% since the start of the Middle East crisis.
“The farming sector cannot wait any longer: the rise in fuel prices, which are essential for producing food, has pushed farms into a critical situation,” the three organizations said in a joint statement.
They said that since the start of the war in Iran, and particularly intensely in recent months, rising fuel and fertilizer prices have driven up production costs and undermined the profitability of farmers and livestock breeders in all regions and sectors.
AGRICULTURAL DIESEL 48% MORE EXPENSIVE IN ONE YEAR
They referred to recent data from the Agriculture Ministry showing that agricultural diesel cost 1.649 euros per liter on September 7, 48% more than a year earlier. This inflation “comes in the middle of the sowing, grape harvest and corn campaigns, and just weeks before the olive harvest, when tractors cannot remain idle.”
Asaja, COAG and UPA complained that the aid for purchasing agricultural diesel will end next September 30 and that, “with less than two weeks to go, there is neither a response nor an alternative on the table.” “The sector is heading into the autumn without any support. That is why farm organizations are demanding immediate responses from all administrations,” the statement added.
GOVERNMENT CONSIDERS NEW AID FOR THE SECTOR
Minister Luis Planas said last Wednesday that the government was considering new support measures to compensate farmers, livestock breeders and fishermen for the increase in diesel prices.
According to the agriculture minister, the government is “considering” adopting additional measures beyond those agreed in recent months, such as compensation for the rise in fertilizer prices, and the Council of Ministers will make a decision “in the coming weeks.”
The minister recalled that any new subsidy, as state aid requiring approval from the European Commission, will be limited to a maximum compensation of 70% of the increase in the price.
