The thirsty wildlife of the Marina Alta region of Alicante is destroying the muscatel grape so appreciated by consumers, according to the Asaja agricultural association. This variety has a high economic value and is highly demanded by “select” national and international markets, says the Alicante agricultural association, which describes the harvest as “catastrophic.”
On the one hand, in the Vall de Pop, especially in the municipalities of Xaló and Llíber, the Virgen Pobre de Xaló Valencian Cooperative will suffer a production loss of 2 million kilos of the Moscatel and Giró grape varieties for winemaking of the 400 hectares that it has, due to the damage caused by wild animals that act voraciously in the face of the acute drought that is going through the Alicante countryside.
On the other hand, the president and technical secretary of ASAJA Alicante, José Vicente Andreu and Ramón Espinosa, accompanied by a team of technicians from the association, also verified that the damage has been very extensive for the dry Moscatel table grape of the Marina Alta, in municipalities like Benissa. A fresh grape intended, according to Asaja, “for the most demanding palates of Barcelona, ??Madrid Bilbao or San Sebastián, highly valued by gourmet markets for its peculiar sweetness.”
The town of Teulada, due to its warm climate, its proximity to the bay of Moraira and the influence of the Llebeig wind, is one of those places where fresh Muscat reaches the highest quality. In this area, damage equivalent to 1.2 million kilos has occurred for the same reasons as in Vall de Pop.
In total, the reduction in production compared to a normal campaign will range around 85% in the entire producing area, an alarming and very high figure that dryland farmers in the province of Alicante “cannot bear, if at “For dessert we add the losses of other hard-hit crops such as cereals or cherries.”
Given the seriousness of the situation, Asaja Alicante demands that the Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries implement direct aid to affected farmers. “We cannot allow such a valued crop, with immense historical roots and widely valued in the best markets, to die due to the inaction of the Administration,” says José Vicente Andreu.
“We are facing more than significant losses that cannot be ignored.” And the Moscatel variety creates a very personal landscape and culture in La Marina Alta and prints an unmistakable seal for the province of Alicante, even being an emblem of our country and the Mediterranean.
Asaja proposes that the exceptional aid to the agricultural sector provided for in Royal Decree Law 4/2023 be extended in response to the worsening of the conditions of the primary sector in dryland crops: grapevines, cereals, cherry trees and nuts; establish bonuses for self-employed contributions and Social Security contributions for workers hired as employees in 2024; that the Valencian Institute of Finance launch an ad hoc financing line to prevent the abandonment of dryland crops with advantageous conditions for affected farmers.
Asaja Alicante also aims to promote the creation of a working group with the affected municipalities of the Marina Alta: Xaló, Llíber, Teulada, Benissa and Benitatxell (among others) and the Alicante Provincial Council, in order to study how to establish support or relief for dryland lands through regenerated waters from said municipal corporations in order to make them available to these croplands in times of drought.
Finally, the agricultural group asks the Ministry for a medium-long strategic plan for the dry farmland in the province of Alicante, which has been severely affected by the lack of rainfall.
