The strawberry sector in Spain has reacted with a fierce defense of the legality of its production due to the boycott of a German association to protest against the expansion of irrigation in the Doñana National Park, where much of this fruit The campaign has also triggered a new political clash between the central government and the PP, increased by the backdrop of the general elections of 23-J. new irrigated areas in the park had already confronted the Spanish Executive with the regional Government for its environmental impact, the German initiative against the Huelva strawberry has raised the decibels of this fight.
The political dust-up has reached such a magnitude that the group of German parliamentarians who had to travel to Andalusia yesterday to find out about strawberry production ended up canceling the visit. In the midst of the uproar, the producers and exporters of the fruit, who fear that the campaign promoted by the German association Campact to require supermarket chains to stop selling strawberries from Spain will take effect and cause them great economic losses – the Spanish strawberry sector sells 30% of its exports to Germany.
The Interprofesional Andaluza de la Fresa y los Frutos Rojos (Interfresa) insisted that production in Huelva complies with the certifications and international protocols required by European supermarkets for “responsible water” management. 100% of the strawberries and red fruits exported from the province of Huelva in Germany have the certification of the Sustainable Program of Irrigation and Use of Groundwater (Spring, for its acronym in English), they added.
German supermarkets require this certification, among which are the most relevant: Rewe, Aldi, Lidl, Edeka and Kaufland, according to Interfresa. Distribution has also reacted. The Spanish subsidiary of the German supermarket chain Aldi assured that “the majority” of strawberries it offers in its stores are from Huelva and that they are all of Spanish origin due to “the demanding quality of the national product”, while at Lidl they stated that, for years, they have maintained “a firm commitment to the Spanish vegetable garden”. “We will continue to work with the strawberry producers of Huelva in the future in order to generate positive changes within the framework of our collaboration”, they added.
For its part, the employers’ association of fruit and vegetable exporters (Fepex) asked the Minister of Agriculture, Luis Planas, by letter, to come “in defense” of the strawberry sector.
