The counselor of Rural Environment and Agricultural Policy, Marcelino Marcos, has presented this Wednesday the position of the Government of Asturias regarding the design of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2028-2034, betting on a model that combines competitiveness, sustainability, and territorial cohesion, and that incorporates the particularities of the Atlantic and mountain regions.
During the meeting of the Sectorial Conference of Agriculture and Rural Development held in Madrid, the regional official emphasized that agriculture, livestock, and forestry exploitation are essential activities for the regional economy and the settlement of population in the rural environment, in addition to contributing to the conservation of the landscape, the prevention of fires, and the structuring of the territory. In this context, he insisted that the next CAP must ensure the economic viability of the farms.
"There will be no environmental sustainability if we do not first guarantee the maintenance of effective agricultural activity," he warned.
The Asturian Executive defends that the aids should be directed to those who really produce, assume business risks, and generate jobs, with special attention to family, professional, and mountain farms, which bear higher structural costs and develop a key function in the rural environment.
Likewise, the Principality sees it essential to preserve agroclimatic and territorial criteria in the distribution of funds and rejects homogeneous schemes that ignore the specificities of mountain areas and the Cantabrian cornice.
The counselor has also emphasized the reinforcement of food security and strategic autonomy through the maintenance of productive capacity and European support for sectors such as dairy and beef cattle, beekeeping, and protein crops. In this line, Asturias demands a CAP with sufficient financial allocation, truly common, with governance that guarantees the real participation of the autonomous communities and a correct territorialization of the interventions.
Measures against water stress
On the other hand, the head of Rural Environment has conveyed the concern of Asturias and the rest of the communities of the Cantabrian cornice and Navarra about the effect of the lack of precipitation and high temperatures on agricultural and livestock farms.
The reduction of pastures forces many livestock farms to buy feed and forages that under normal conditions they produce themselves. In light of this situation, Marcos Líndez has requested immediate actions from the Ministry for the affected farms, including extraordinary aid, the creation of a reserve fund for climate crises, the extension of cost relief measures, and specific actions to sustain the demand for products from the most affected sectors.
The Principality, for its part, will mobilize its own resources to mitigate the impact of this situation. Specifically, it will increase the funds allocated to complement the contribution of the State Entity for Agricultural Insurance (Enesa) and will launch exceptional aid directed at the farms.
Claims for fishing policy
Regarding fishing, the Government of Asturias defends that the future community policy maintains sufficient funding to meet the specific needs of the sector and the coastal communities.
The Principality considers that any integration of fishing into a broader financial framework must ensure that this activity retains its own weight, decision-making capacity, and a differentiated line of funding. Therefore, the counselor has demanded that the next multiannual financial framework of the European Union includes a clearly identifiable fishing allocation with its own budget traceability.
Likewise, it has requested that the autonomous communities participate effectively in the design, execution, and monitoring of future regional plans, as well as the implementation of stable coordination mechanisms with the General Administration of the State that allow them to intervene in strategic decisions and possible financial reprogramming.