Asaja demands Agriculture to monitor crops in Vega Baja and Camp d'Elx to prevent the 'brutal proliferation' of thrips

Several days ago, the Ministry of Agriculture proposed measures to curb the spread of the South African thrips, which is wreaking havoc in the southern province of Alicante on crops such as the Mollar Pomegranate, citrus fruits, or table grapes.

The Young Farmers Association (Asaja) of Alicante laments that these measures adopted by the regional government are 'insufficient' and criticizes that all responsibility is left to the producer. In light of the severe issue posed by the Scirtothrips aurantii infestation, the association demands that Agriculture establish a monitoring network to halt this 'brutal proliferation' of the insect.

'The regional government cannot allow that in the next campaign, crops like the Mollar Pomegranate, citrus fruits, and table grapes maintain the same level of infestation that we suffered in 2024,' Asaja states, emphasizing that this pest is 'very difficult to control as it is a very small insect that hides in parts of the plant that only experts can assess in its early stages of development.'

In this regard, the president of Asaja Alicante, José Vicente Andreu, insists that farmers 'do not have the means at their disposal to detect it early, which would prevent the high proliferation rates that are brutal and impossible to control once established the pest.' Indeed, the farmer already observes the damage when it is 'irreparable.'

Therefore, Asaja proposes to Agriculture an action plan that includes implementing a monitoring network in at least Vega Baja and Camp d'Elx, the two most affected areas and the municipality where the pest first appeared in the region and is expected to cause significant damage again.

The agricultural association describes this action as 'necessary' to prevent the advance of this insect, which is 'causing significant losses to farmers due to the difficulty of marketing fruits with these blemishes on their skin.' Asaja reminds that these only affect the appearance and not the interior, nor their quality or taste.

'Producers could not withstand another campaign like this; the level of thrips must decrease and be eradicated,' expresses Andreu, who calls on the Consell for a 'determined and firm attitude towards pests from third countries,' while criticizing the 'permissive' attitude of the EU and the Spanish Government.

Finally, ASAJA points out that the order published a few days ago by the Ministry for its control is very generic and leaves all responsibility to the farmer, burdening them with an additional cost they cannot bear (human resources, machinery, and phytosanitary products).

Additionally, the technical department of the association adds that 'they have forgotten about the authorized products for pomegranate and grape, as the thrips control strategy they have proposed only includes those for citrus.' In this situation, the agricultural entity will request an 'urgent' meeting with the said body to explain all the ideas presented in this statement and remind that it should be the administration that acts at this moment as a facilitating entity.