Ministers from the agriculture departments from Spain’s major tomato production regions – Andalusia, Murcia, the Canary Islands and Valencia – have today (2 March) signed a joint demand urging the country’s government to oppose trade concessions to Morocco.
The accord, which will be delivered to Spanish agriculture minister Elena Espinosa, comes as the European Union reaches the final stages of negotiations with Morocco over reform of its current agreement of association.
In a statement, the Spanish regions claimed the north African nation’s failure to comply with the terms of the present deal was causing “serious distortions” in the tomato sector.
They argued that instead of making further concessions to Morocco, the EU should focus on demanding that the country complies with the current agreement and pays customs duties that the regions claim have been avoided.
The regions’ action follows major protests against potential trade concessions to Morocco, the most recent of which took place on 28 February in Almería, attracting more than 7,000 producers and agricultural workers.
Members of three leading agricultural associations – Asaja, COAG and UPA – took part in a 2km march through the centre of the southern Spanish city to demand that the Spanish government opposes a more favourable agreement with Morocco.
