Barredo announces that extraordinary drought aid will be granted this year, ex officio

The Minister for Food, Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries, Amaia Barredo, has announced that extraordinary aid to deal with the effects of drought will be granted later this year and will not be required by the beneficiaries, but will be granted ex officio and directly to speed up administrative procedures.

The aid is being finalised with the Members of Parliament.

Barredo explained, in an interview with Onda Vasca, that the Basque Government is working with the Member States to determine the amounts of aid and the subsectors that could benefit.

According to the Councillor, the meetings are taking place almost every day, and since the collection of most of the crops is advanced, the details of the aid will be given 'very soon'. The aid will be provided as all the data is collected and the aim is toensure that farmers do not have to submit applications.

Forraje shortage and farm situation

Barredo also referred to the situation caused by the lack of forraje and explained that there have been several situations that have tightened the liquidity of some farms, causing "anxiety and pressure".

The Councillor, however, has called for a "serious and reasonable diagnosis" to be made so that aid reaches farms that have suffered real losses.

On the other hand, it has stressed that climate change is causing crops to thrive and that the sector will have to adapt production practices, planting and harvesting dates and facilities, and has advocated prioritising supply planning to address price fluctuations and shortages.

Rioja vintage is one month ahead.

Barredo has pointed out that the progress of vintage is a "clear example" of the impact of climate change, namely that the beginning of the harvest of white grapes in Rioja Alavesa on 7 August is one month earlier than usual historically.

In any case, he has highlighted the industry's work and stressed that the grapes have arrived in "excellent" health conditions, so he hopes that the campaign will be excellent in terms of quality.

In terms of quantity, he explained that the Rioja Designation of Origin continues to adjust the number of grapes entering the wineries due to the mismatch between supply and demand, a situation which, according to Barredo, will require seeking new customers and strengthening the marketing of wine.