The mayor of Cieza, Tomás Rubio, and the councilor for Agriculture, Manuel Martínez, met this afternoon with the councilor Sara Rubira and participated in a FECOAM stone fruit sector meeting at the La Vega cooperative in Cieza, where the demand was raised to "cover the 17 million euros that the sector has lost due to the intense rainfall."
Last spring's persistent rains resulted in the loss of 25,700 tons of fruit in Cieza and other adjacent municipalities.
The regional government today demanded immediate action from the Ministry of Agriculture to compensate stone fruit growers in Cieza and other adjacent municipalities for the losses suffered last spring due to the heavy rains at the end of May and in June, followed by high temperatures. These rains caused the fruit trees to ripen prematurely, resulting in the loss of 25,700 tons that were ready for harvest.
The Minister of Water, Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Sara Rubira, participated in the FECOAM stone fruit sector meeting where she stated that “the regional government demands immediate aid to compensate for the production losses suffered by hundreds of farmers in the area,” and that the Ministry will be asked “to mediate with Agroseguro to cover losses valued at more than 17 million euros, or to approve compensation for the affected farmers.”
Sectoral Meeting
It's worth noting that many of the affected varieties were nearing the end of their ripening process, but the heavy rains combined with high temperatures caused excessive over-ripening. The most significant impact was seen in flat peaches, peaches, nectarines, and apricots.
Rubira explained that “although 85% of fruit farmers in the Region have insurance to cover losses due to inclement weather, Agroseguro refused to assess the crops, understanding that the contracted guarantees did not cover this type of loss.”
Both the regional stone fruit sector and the Ministry of Water, Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries have asked the Minister "to get personally involved in this problem," the Minister added, "and to initiate the procedures for reducing the Net Performance Index (IRN) of the Personal Income Tax for stone fruit producers who pay taxes under the simplified tax regime in the affected municipalities" so that they do not have to pay taxes on a product that has only generated losses for them.
The councilor concluded by lamenting that the agricultural insurance policies taken out by farmers “do not meet the needs arising from the severe weather in the Region.” For this reason, Rubira stressed the urgent need to modify the current system, which “excludes many of the losses the sector is experiencing.”
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