The three largest agricultural trade unions in Spain announced today that they will continue their mobilizationsafter the meeting they had with the Minister of Agriculture, who committed to “work» to deal with the crisis in the sector.

The mobilizations of the Spanish farmers will end “as soon as we have concrete measures” on agricultural policy, “in the service” of farmers“, underlined during a press conference the vice-president of the Union of Small Farmers (UPA) Montserrat Cortinias.

The positions of the representatives of the other two unions that participated in the meeting, Coag and Asaja, were on the same wavelength.

“The countryside must be heard”said José Manuel Thembolada, vice president of Asaja, estimating that the agricultural policy that is being implemented now protects more “the environment” from “rights of farmers».

The meeting was called on an emergency basis by Minister Luis Planas, seeking to ease pressure on Spain’s agricultural sector, who announced on Tuesday that he plans to join the European anger movement with a series of demonstrations, “in the coming weeks».

In his statements after the end of the meeting, the Socialist minister stated that he understood the pleadings of the farmers and pledged to defend a greater administrative “simplification” in front of “accumulation of rules“, which are defined by the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

The point is to “recognize which bureaucratic procedures can be relaxed”, he underlined, leaving pointers towards the attitude of Brussels in the face of the farmers’ anger.

“The reason we are here is because the Commission has not been able to hold a dialogue with the sector until today“, he pointed out.

Spanish unions talk about “a growing frustration and discomfort” because of her “suffocating bureaucracy caused by European regulations” and the “unfair competition” of products imported from outside the European Union, which are not subject to the same restrictions.

Since the announcement of the mobilizations on Tuesday, rallies have taken place in León, Tamora and Avila, among others, in the north and central part of the country. Demonstrations are planned for February 13 in Barcelona, ​​February 14 in Andalusia and Castilla la Mancha, and February 21 in Madrid.

During the meeting, the trade unionists and Luis Planas also addressed the issue of the attacks that Spanish farmers have been receiving for days in France, on behalf of the French demonstrators, who are attacking truck drivers coming from Spain.

“Such incidents” are “unacceptable“, underlined Planas, recalling the European regulations, which provide for “the free movement of people and goods» in the EU.