The establishment of a new regulatory decree for the banana subsector in the Canary Islands that addresses the current reality of the fruit's production and marketing is being debated, and on July 10, representatives of the main professional agricultural organizations of the archipelago, together with a group of producers, met with the President of the Canary Islands Government, the Councilors for Agriculture and the Presidency, the Deputy Councilor for the Primary Sector and the Director General for Agriculture to share their proposals and opinions on the measures that the Canary Islands Government's Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food Sovereignty intends to propose.
As stated by Sergio RodrÃguez, from Palca, "from 2007 to 2023, the islands lost around 3,500 banana producers, while the acreage has remained the same, so there seems to be a concentration of the acreage by some companies, and we fear that if there was another crisis, which we expect in the short term, growers could suffer further financial problems and we may lose between 1,000 and 1,500 producers more."
"We have to remember that there are growers producing fewer than 45 tons per hectare, when in order to keep a farm profitable, the yield should reach at least 50 tons."
"POSEI aid was originally intended to protect traditional agricultural activities, to safeguard the economic and social resources of rural areas, and to prevent damage to the landscape and the environment due to the abandonment of farms. And the fact is that we have already lost 3,500 of the more than 11,000 producers who received it in 2007. If another 1,000 were lost, the granting of the aid itself could be reconsidered, because it would not be serving the purpose for which it was conceived," says the representative of Palca.
"For this reason, Canary agricultural organizations have addressed the Canary Islands Government to make some proposals related to the distribution of POSEI aid, as well as the modification of Decree 48/2018, which regulates the functioning of the producers' organizations. Given the situation of the subsector, we are asking the Government, among other things, to put a cap on the production per hectare, and for new plantations to be excluded from POSEI aid, because if we already have overproduction it is illogical to continue planting."
"We are also asking for an extension of the recalculation period for the reference quantities, currently set at 2 years, to 6 years, as that would help discourage new plantings or investments from speculators or vulture funds.
"Knowing the actual cultivated acreage on the islands is fundamental, and that is why we also believe that the total acreage devoted to banana plantations under plastic should be published in the POSEI aid payment resolutions. The fact is that the aid is going to a common fund, and since the area planted is linked to the production, the rules should be the same for all," says Sergio.
"We also believe that the role of producer organizations is to concentrate the supply and market it, and that they should not be just managing funds. We must remember that if those who receive the aid also market their fruit, in the end, as previously warned by the European Union, certain operators will start off in an advantageous position compared to other producers."
"In this context of operators and producer organizations, we demand greater control over the management and withdrawal of fruit from the market, for which aid is also received."
"After listening to us, the Councilor proposed for the possible implementation of these measures to be voted by the producers themselves. To us, this seems like a correct, but slow approach. Otherwise, we will ask the Parliament of the Canary Islands to pass a PNL to allow the Council of Agriculture to make decisions."
"It is important to remember that, as professional agricultural organizations, we defend the interests of agricultural producers and ranchers on the islands; however, Asprocan sent the President of the Canary Islands Government a letter accusing the Union of Agricultural Producer and Rancher Unions - Palca of being unaware of the reality of the banana subsector, and even of acting in a way that benefited the competition: bananas imported from third countries," says Sergio. "These claims are not only false, but concerning."
"We expect all the production to arrive at once from August onwards."
It is worth recalling that after a whole of 2023 with overproduction and prices falling below 22 cents per kilo, the banana subsector has been experiencing months of low production and prices as low as 1.35 euros at source in early July.
"Last year at this time there was also a limited supply, but this year we are in worse circumstances, because the island of Tenerife is having major problems with the water supply and there have been areas with severe water restrictions."
"Nonetheless, the crops are still ready and about to enter the market," says Sergio. "In fact, we expect all that production to arrive from August onwards, and there will be some chaos until next January/February, when the supply will fall again."
For more information:
Palca
www.palca.es