The Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food Sovereignty of the Government of the Canary Islands, Narvay Quintero, and the president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Oswaldo Betancort, met this Thursday, February 5, with associations and professionals from the primary sector of the island to discuss topics of interest for the agricultural, livestock and fishing activity of the island, as well as the support measures of the Canarian Executive in these areas
In the meeting, the head of the department detailed the actions of support of the regional Executive aimed at the preservation of strategic crops of Lanzarote such as the sweet potato and the vine, in addition to detailing the policies implemented or programmed in the field of livestock and fishing.
Oswaldo Betancort, also insular councilor of Agriculture and Livestock, thanked Quintero's empathy, "a councilor who feels the sector," and referred to the increase in financial allocations during the current term to support agriculture, livestock, and fishing in Lanzarote and La Graciosa. After the meeting with primary sector professionals, the Lanzarotean president highlighted the commitment of the insular and regional governments to multiply the water infrastructures that directly benefit the sector: "Today, 2,500 more cubic meters are being desalinated per day thanks to the collaboration of the Canary Islands Executive."
He also referred to the generational change that Lanzarote is achieving, where job creation data is outstanding at the regional level, "because we have managed to add value to the primary sector," added Betancort before ensuring the continuity of aid for the pit in La Geria this 2026 and the implementation of specific support for camel activity.**Regarding sweet potato**, Quintero announced Brussels' approval of the **16.6% increase in the financial allocation** for this crop within the POSEI framework, proposed by the Canary Islands Government. Likewise, this crop is undergoing a sanitation process for different varieties financed by the Canary Islands Executive through a subsidy of 38,000 euros to the island corporationRegarding the possible creation of a quality seal for this tuber proposed by the farmers present at the meeting, the counselor explained that it is necessary for a producers' association to make the request so that, based on it, the Canary Institute of Agri-food Quality (ICCA), as an entity attached to the competent Ministry in the management of quality distinctions, initiates the processing of the procedure.Regarding vine cultivation, the head of the area announced that within the scope of the project's actions for the **conservation of the agrosystems of the La Geria wine-growing area**, the Executive will allocate in 2026 a **direct subsidy of 250,000 euros** with the aim of curbing the abandonment of plots in this emblematic Protected Natural Area to which the Government of the Canary Islands has allocated an investment of 750,000 in the last two fiscal yearsLikewise, among the measures of support for these two strategic crops, the head of the department highlighted the two extraordinary aids articulated by the regional Executive to compensate for the effects of the drought in the 2023 and 2024 campaigns for a total amount of 7.9 million euros, of which 1.16 million were allocated to support more than 760 farmers in Lanzarote dedicated to sweet potato and vineyardsThe president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote also valued the cooperation with the Executive in areas such as the fight against phylloxera, the novel aid for cultivation in the pits of La Geria, the conservation of the Canarian black bee - key to the ecological balance of the Archipelago - or the protection of the Canarian camel as an autochthonous breed, "initiatives that demonstrate that when we work in a coordinated manner, we not only protect our agricultural heritage, but we strengthen the competitiveness of the primary sector in Lanzarote and La Graciosa".On the other hand, information was provided on the protocols for the prevention and control of phylloxera during the pruning season recently published by the department led by Narvay Quintero. On this matter, the official recalled that coordination between administrations, Regulatory Councils, and sector professionals has made it possible to keep the aphid contained in localized and treated plots within the specific geographical area where the outbreak was detectedRegarding Lanzarote, he recalled, the 85 surveys carried out in wine-growing areas have yielded a negative result, while, in the Archipelago as a whole, 7,782 field studies have been carried out, in which the organism has been detected in 89 locations, which represents a positive ratio of 1.1%, all of them in Tenerife
Livestock and fishing challenges
In this meeting, to which the directors of the Canary Institute of Agri-food Quality and Livestock, Luis Arráez Guadalupe and Andrés Díaz Matoso, respectively, also attended, the process of legalization of livestock facilities promoted by the Executive was also reported, through which the activity of three farms in Lanzarote was authorized throughout 2025Likewise, the petition submitted to Brussels for the incorporation of the **Canary camel** into the subsidies of the Strategic Plan of the Common Agricultural Policy (PEPAC) was addressed, officially cataloged as a breed in danger of extinction and recognized as genetic heritage with a high degree of protection, which will contribute to keeping alive the tradition of breeding, management, and sustainable use of these animalsFurthermore, at the meeting, the actions were detailed to, through a contract to the public company GMR Canarias, provide support to the Agricultural Extension Agencies of the respective Island Councils, for compliance with the new regulations governing the Register of Agricultural Holdings of the Canary Islands (REAC)According to this new state-level regulation, framed within the Information System of agricultural and livestock holdings and agricultural production (SIEX), an autonomous registry is created to unify in a single computer system all relevant information dispersed in the different registries specific to each area. In this way, the systematized and interoperable knowledge of the agricultural activity that takes place in the Canary Islands is facilitated, as well as the granting of aid or subsidiesAfter this meeting, Quintero and Betancort also held a meeting with the representatives of the fishing sector of Lanzarote, in which the insular councilor of the area, Samuel Martín, also participated, to discuss the **measures of support for the brotherhoods, their facilities and equipment**, as well as the adaptation of fishing activity in the Canary Islands to the new state and community regulatory frameworksIn this regard, the counselor announced that in this campaign the increase in funds aimed at covering both investments in equipment and current expenses will be maintained, consolidating the increase to 1.8 million euros established in 2025, of which 287,000 euros were allocated to fishermen's guilds in Lanzarote
