Spanish producers’ association Unió-Coag is calling on the regional authorities in Valencia to put in place a control programme against fruit fly as soon as possible, to protect its table-grape production and enhance its competitiveness
“It is necessary to study and put in place for this season a programme to fight against the fruit fly pest in the table-grape sector,” the organisation said in a statement. It is making the appeal to the new agriculture minister at the Valencia regional executive, Maritina Hernández. “This is the same appeal we made to the former minister Juan Cotino, and is no more than producers of other products in the Valencia region and in other neighbouring regions enjoy,” said the statement.
The association has complained that having to buy the necessary pesticides to combat the fly means that producers are incurring added costs that are having an impact on their already under-pressure profitability. “Meanwhile, growers of other crops in the Valencia region have free access to the right pesticides and other means put at their disposition by the regional executive,” said a spokesman for the union. “For example, this is certainly the case for citrus producers, stone-fruit and kaki fruit growers.”
In the region of Murcia, an official regulation controls the measures used against fruit fly and also encompasses table-grape production.
Growers in Valencia believe that because of Murcia’s better measures, their competitiveness with the neighbouring region is hindered and this is an “injustice” in light of the measures granted to producers of other crops.
Some 10,075 hectares of table grapes are under production in Valencia, and some 7,141ha of that area is dedicated solely to the renowned Vinalopó grape, which is grown under protection of paper bags.
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