A campaign to boycott Spanish strawberries, launched in Germany in the name of environmental protection, has generated outrage among farmers and the Spanish right wing. As a result, a German parliamentary delegation visiting Spain decided to suspend its work on Monday.
The agricultural union Asaja denounced this boycott as a “harsh and unjustified attack on our country’s agricultural sector,” lamenting the aggression towards the thousands of producers and their families who work hard all year round.
The campaign focuses on strawberries grown in the province of Huelva, in Andalusia, which is the main exporting area of red fruits in Europe. The Interprofessional Association of the Andalusian Strawberry (Interfresa) considers that this campaign is detrimental to the entire sector.
The controversy is due to the request of the German organization Campact, supported by 162,000 people, that the big German supermarket chains, such as Lidl and Edeka, withdraw strawberries produced in Huelva from their shelves. The NGO seeks to denounce a bill of the Junta de AndalucÃa, governed by the Partido Popular (PP), which aims to legalize the illegal exploitation of berries near the Doñana natural park, a refuge for millions of migratory birds.
Environmental groups argue that this initiative could legalize 1,500 hectares of crops, most of which are irrigated with illegal wells. This would threaten the future of this emblematic reserve, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and in danger of desertification.
The leader of the far-right Vox party, Santiago Abascal, and the Asaja trade union consider this campaign and the visit of the German parliamentary delegation as unacceptable interference in Spain’s internal affairs. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has accused the PP and Vox of denying climate change and warned of possible European sanctions.
The German delegation announced the suspension of its visit due to the political importance it has acquired in the context of the upcoming legislative elections in Spain. The province of Huelva produces 300,000 tons of strawberries per year, 90% of Spanish production, and generates more than 100,000 direct jobs. Germany is its main export market.