Spanish producers launched a series of protests against proposed EU Common Agricultural Policy reform on Tuesday in Madrid.
Under the slogan Agriculture is Food, producers from all farm sectors nationwide are warning that reform risks dismantling Spanish agricultural production and threatens to bring about a food crisis.
Thousands of farmers and growers were in the Spanish capital to donate five tonnes of their produce to the Madrid food bank in an act of solidarity.
Miguel Blanco, president of farmers’ organisation Coag, said: “If the gates are closed on our way of farming, it will open the door for a food crisis. It is about defending our agriculture as a strategic sector, as a matter of national importance. In defending our farming, we are protecting food security for the whole of society.”
Coag next plans to take its protests to the European Parliament and European Commission offices in Spain.
