MONTORO (CÓRDOBA), May 9. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, asserted this Thursday that the readjustment of aid from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) published this Wednesday in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) "does not affect in any way to payments to farmers and ranchers" in Spain, "and especially now that the application period is open."

This was highlighted by the minister to journalists, accompanied by the delegate of the Government of Spain in Andalusia, Pedro Fernández, and the subdelegate in Córdoba, Ana López, before visiting the Montoro Olive Fair, in its 22nd edition, at the same time who commented that "the published regulation refers to a budget adjustment linked to the financing of support to Ukraine in its fight against the illegal and unjustified invasion by Russia", so that "it does not affect even a single euro to the contribution that the CAP makes to Spain, whether in direct aid or in rural development".

In this sense, he commented that "it refers to a very small part of the budget, what is called the centralized management of the European Commission (EC), which has no relationship with the budget envelopes of the member states."

Meanwhile, the minister reflected on agriculture and Europe on this Europe Day, May 9, underlining that "the great progress in the modernization and advancement of Spain has had two great pillars: the 1978 Constitution and the entry into Europe in 1986", to which he added that "particularly for agriculture and the rural world, the Common Agricultural Policy has been fundamental".

"If we did not have a common agricultural policy, we would have to invent it," Planas assured, adding that "to think that a sector like agriculture and livestock receives approximately 7,000 million euros annually in aid in Spain to support good work and for difficulty in achieving profitability on a daily basis is great news.

Therefore, he declared that both for farmers and ranchers, and for him as a minister, "it is a day not only of celebration, but of the future to think not only about what we do, but what we can do for the immediate future."

Meanwhile, Planas has valued the celebration of the Montoro Olive Tree Fair, for which he has congratulated the City Council, the mayor, Lola Amo, "for the great work with the support of the University of Córdoba, the International Olive Council and the of the administrations", given that "this celebration every two years is a new opportunity to meet within the olive sector and examine the present and the future", he indicated.

Along these lines, he assessed that the presentations that are being held during these days in relation to topics linked to the technology of olive grove and olive oil production are "absolutely fundamental", and believes that "it is also at a good time." ", because "a campaign is going to conclude with 853,000 tons, a figure higher than the initial estimate of last October's capacity, which was 766,000 tons", although "both this campaign and the previous one have been abnormally low", he said. regretted.

In any case, the minister has stated that "the latest rains and the development of flowering and fruit set of the olive trees herald a campaign where higher production can be achieved", but he waits until the month of October, until the capacity is reached, to "the specification of possible quantities in this regard."

In any case, he has stressed that "this is a sector that has a future", and as a fact he has stated that "at this moment the seedlings are exhausted in all the olive grove marketing companies", which "shows that there is an interest present for the sector", while commenting that "there is a lot to do in terms of technology and innovation", which "is one of the great characteristics of our agri-food sector", he praised.

Furthermore, he stated that "in the world of olive groves the ceiling has not yet been reached" and he believes that "more and better can be done", something that "also implies brand image, quality", highlighting that "the quality standard that was adopted by the Government of Spain a couple of years ago has been a guarantee for the entire sector and thanks to the good work of the olive growers, the industry and the distribution we will continue working in this direction.

Likewise, Planas has emphasized that "the image of the olive grove of Andalusia and Córdoba, beyond the production of top quality food from the point of view of nutrition and its qualities for human health, is also a symbol of mark of what our society, our land and our people are, of that olive grove landscape that is so important.

The 2.79 million hectares of olive groves contribute to Spain being the world's leading exporter of this product, with 60% of the production of the European Union (EU), and 40% of the world. As the minister has pointed out, "Andalusia is the national production leader", with 56% of the average Spanish production. The sector employs more than 350,000 farmers, generates 15,000 industrial jobs and more than 32 million wages per season.

Asked about the prices of olive oil, the head of Agriculture assured that "the good news is that the Spanish and also the international markets, despite the rise in prices, have had a very high degree of fidelity regarding the consumption of olive oil." olive oil".

As he commented, "despite the fact that the price on supermarket shelves has more than doubled, the result has been that there has been a decrease in consumption, but much lower than what specialists estimated."

Thus, looking to the future, he hopes that "everyone reaches their profitability threshold, that the olive growers, because they deserve it and that is why the aid and the Food Chain Law exist, have to sell above their production costs and to have a decent remuneration, that this decent remuneration and that business surplus is also deserved by the industry and evidently by distribution".

Given this, he has made "a call for everyone's responsibility and transparency to ensure that this price evolution that is going to occur in all segments in the coming months is done in the most transparent and smoothest way possible." .