Oswaldo Betancort, and the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food Sovereignty of the Government of the Canary Islands, Narvay Quintero, held a meeting at the Experimental Agricultural Farm of Lanzarote to address various issues of interest to the primary sector of the Island, in which both representatives have committed to "work together to promote agriculture, livestock, fisheries and the agri-food subsector of the Island."
This first working table was also attended by the technical team of the Insular Farm, as well as the general director of Livestock, Andrés Díaz Matoso; the director of the Canary Islands Institute of Agri-Food Quality (ICCA), Luis Arráez; and the island councilor of the Biosphere Reserve Area, Environment and Climate Change, Samuel Martín.
Oswaldo Betancort thanked "the response to the call and the time dedicated by the representatives of a primary sector that must be pampered, cared for and provided with resources and, in this first consideration within the calendar that has already been agreed until December 31." "We have taken note of the assessments that the technicians have given us about what the deficiencies have been during these past years."
"The representatives of the primary sector must be pampered, cared for and provided with resources"
“In this sense, we have talked about subsidies, but also about infrastructures and the positioning of Lanzarote and La Graciosa within the strategic lines of the island and the Canary Islands and, from this point, we will begin to request all those policies and investments that promote the primary sector of Lanzarote and Graciosa”, he added.
After this first technical meeting, Narvay Quintero valued the fact that Oswaldo Betancort has "assumed the powers related to the area of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, Hunting, Food Sovereignty and Landscape", in addition to "exercising the maximum representation" in the island institution, "a clear sign of the importance that this new Government team gives to agricultural and fishing activity on the Island."
Quintero explained that the majority of the requests made during the meeting with the technical staff of the Cabildo "are related to the coordination and collaboration between both administrations", "a key issue that we are going to reinforce to promote the primary sector of Lanzarote and La Graciosa", he assured.
Likewise, the counselor has defended in the meeting held with the representatives of the livestock sector that "the primary sector of Lanzarote demands and needs direct attention, and will find support in the Ministry, since this is fundamental in the Canary Islands because it guarantees our food, generates employment and maintains our agricultural landscape, one of the tourist attractions of the Canary Islands." He also announced that in the coming months "monographic meetings will be held with the different subsectors to address in detail various issues of interest linked to the primary sector."
“The primary sector of Lanzarote demands and needs direct attention"
Among the demands raised by the farmers, they highlight the "increase in the financial sheet of the POSEI lines destined for livestock production and payment", of the amounts of this program in "two periods of the year to be able to have a part of these funds more quickly, the promotion of native breeds, and the implementation of a premium aimed at goat breeding." They also highlighted the "need to improve the livestock training offered on the island and to advance the modifications of the REA to the beginning of the year."
For his part, Quintero acknowledged that livestock "is going through difficult times because it has been greatly affected by the economic impact of the COVID pandemic, the war between Russia and Ukraine, and inflation", and recalled that one of the first measures implemented by the new Canarian government has been the "modification of the REA, which has meant an increase in the aid that farmers receive for the purchase of raw materials for the production of feed for animal feed", he adds.
The counselor also advanced in the session that the Ministry is studying the "granting of direct aid for this subsector before the end of the year." "A support with which we intend to contribute to improving their current situation," he concludes.