The Valencian Association of Agriculture (AVA) has expressed its concern about the damage that the sharp drop in temperatures could cause in the second part of the citrus campaign, with vegetables like artichokes and beans also in danger. The damage could be "very significant" in the case of oranges and would add to the "great losses" that producers have suffered in the first part of the campaign, as pointed out by the president of AVA-Asaja, Cristóbal Aguado.
The growers expected better prices in the second part of the orange season because of the lower supply and reduced competition from other countries, but if oranges suffer the impact of frost, this scenario would change and there may be "massive withdrawals of fruit."
However, for deciduous fruit trees, a drop in temperatures may be positive. Aguado has called on the government to become more involved and apply the fiscal and support measures to the sector, which have yet to arrive, as compensation for the drought and the impact of rainfall.
"If there is no response soon and there is a frost, the agrarian organizations will have to consider organising protests," warned the AVA president, who pointed out that only about half of the harvest is insured. Aguado has insisted that if the government does not act soon, many producers will abandon the fields.
"This is the true tragedy of Valencian agriculture," he lamented, "the lack of clear support from the Administration to encourage land reclamation and establish market measures to guarantee a decent price and give the producers a future."
Source: EFE
