More Days for Fishing and Equal Conditions in Agricultural Imports, Demands to Europe

More days to fish at sea and compete on equal terms with imported agricultural products. These demands from both sectors were defended by the Councillor for Agriculture, Water, Livestock, and Fisheries, Miguel Barrachina, this Monday in Brussels.

The regional leader participated in several meetings with various community officials to analyse the current situation of the primary sector in the Community and the province of Alicante.

One of these meetings included the participation of the Fisheries Counsellor of the Permanent Representation of Spain to the EU, Guiomar Henares, to whom Barrachina conveyed the importance of "improving evaluation systems" for the sector.

Thus, Barrachina stressed the need to increase fishing days in the Mediterranean, which bathes the waters of the Community and the province, based on "decision-making on data and reports," as the current 27 days "are completely insufficient and make the sector's continuity unfeasible."

The councillor also conveyed these concerns to the Chief of Staff of the Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans, Ioannis Hadjiyiannis. In this regard, he noted that "we are working to ensure that fishermen can go out to sea for more than 133 days, as the fishing sector in the Valencian Community generates more than 4,000 direct and indirect jobs and has an incalculable social value."

He also held a meeting with Giuseppe Sciacca, Director for Maritime Affairs and Climate of the CPMR (Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions), where he highlighted that "Mediterranean fishing allows us to enjoy the best gastronomy in the world, is a great tourist attraction, and is undoubtedly synonymous with the tradition and culture we want to preserve."

The meetings also extended to the field of agriculture. Thus, the Councillor for Agriculture, Water, Livestock, and Fisheries held a meeting with the Director-General of the Directorate-General for Agriculture of the European Commission, Diego Canga, where he insisted "on the need to reduce legislative hyper-regulation and move towards greater administrative simplification for our farmers."

The councillor also advocated for the establishment of mirror clauses in bilateral trade agreements and for the importation of agricultural products from third countries. "We want to ensure that imported foods meet the same standards applied to European producers, avoiding unfair competition and ensuring the safety of the products we consume in the EU."

Finally, Barrachina explained the problems faced by farmers with the arrival of new pests and diseases and the shortage of phytosanitary products for their control. "It is necessary for our farmers to have all the tools to face the threats affecting their productions," he indicated.