Spanish

Spanish wine promised them very happy after the end of drought. The price of grapes is changing everything

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The wine industry is facing a complicated year. In the eye of the hurricane, the price of grapes, such a low price that is leading farmers to stand up war. A problem that It has been hanging on the sector From before even the beginning of the harvest. The food chain law. The Unió Llauradora, Agrarian Organization of Valencian, has been the last sector group in denounce the situation of the grape market. The organization has claimed to claim Ministry of Agriculture Valenciana A study on the production costs for the grapes used for wine production, a study they consider could “endorse possible complaints for breach of the food chain law.” This legislation is responsible for regulating “the operation and vertebration of the food chain.” A law that seeks, According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Foodimprove the efficacy and competitiveness of the sector while reducing the imbalance in commercial relations. According to explained in a statement The Llauradora Unió, this legislation “the only instrument that producers possess to defend their interests (…) in the face of commercial distribution abuses.” 20% less. Farmers do not consider that the price at which wine producers buy the grape is fair. According to the forecasts of the Valencian Sector Association, the price of grapes could fall by more than 20% this year. Expectations v. reality. The Valencian field is the last to join the complaints of other vinification grape -producing regions. The harvest seemed to be abundant, with some areas relying on a recovery in production also 20%. This increase in supply would be the great engine of the price drop, a decrease such that for some wine producing regions they have indicated in recent months that they would not allow them to cover production costs. To this problem, the Unió Llauradora adds another in the fact that its harvest is not even reaching the expected volume at first. Despite this, prices, based on more optimistic expectations, They continue to be low. “The rains recorded at certain times of the campaign were a relief and contributed to the recovery of the vine The association stands out. One crisis after another. The current one is just one of the crises that the sector has had to face in recent years. The increase that some wine regions have seen in production responds rather to a recovery compared to recent years, marked by the drought that put a good part of the agricultural sector against the strings (even the farmer). In Xataka | During centuries Galicia was a thriving land of olive groves with unique varieties in the world. What changed it is still a mystery Image | Dailos Medina / Pixabay

What does the Spanish data protection agency allow and how to do it

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Let’s explain How and when can you record spam calls to report To those who are sending them. In 2023 we received The antispam law hoping that these calls stop, although today We continue to receive commercial calls. But the law serves, and there are companies that They are already being finedso now it does not correspond to us to know how we can fight them. The thing is that the Spanish Agency for Data Protection allows you to record spam calls to report themand we are going to tell you what the procedure is. Record spam call The first thing you have to do is be able to record the call. Unfortunately, most mobiles They no longer allow you to record callshence You will have to resort to more rudimentary methods How to use an audio recorder on another mobile or on a computer. You will have to receive the call and put it on the hands free to hear high. This way, You can record the sound with another device While you receive the call. You can also use Apps to record callsalthough careful because you will be giving access to all your calls. It is not the most recommended solution. Finally, you should know that not all calls are prohibited. When you hire a product it is possible that Among the terms and conditions you accept is to receive calls commercial, so having your explicit permission a company that you have hired for something can call you. For example, imagine that you register in an app of a gasoline brand, because it is possible that this company calls you to offer you other products. Now denounces the call Once you have the recording, you can proceed Entering the corresponding section of the Spanish Agency for Data Protection to denounce these calls. The address is SEDEAEPD.GOB.ES/SEDE-ELECTRONICA-WEB/VISTAS/FORMNUEVARECLAMACION/NUEVARECLAMACION.JSF. Once inside, You are going to ask for certain data that you must contribute to make the complaint. These are: Identification of the entity promoted in each call: You will have to say the company, brand or product made by the commercial call. You will also have to contribute a photo or screen capture where the number is seen from which they call you and the date and time they do. Telephone Line Number Specification: You will have to specify what the phone number they have called. Come on, you will have to say your phone number, and provide an invoice or contract to demonstrate that you are the titular person. If you are not a holder, you will need a signed statement of whoever. Rational indications of the existence of the infraction: You will have to demonstrate that this infraction has existed. Come on, what You can send a copy of the call recording where they try that they have done it. Be registered in exclusion services: If the call is prior to June 30, 2023, you will have to prove that your number was registered from at least 2 months before the call to an advertising exclusion service, such as the Robinson list. Finally, you should know that You can only make the complaint If the call has been made after June 30, 2023, which is when the last law entered into force. If the call is previous, you will have to prove that you had been in advertising exclusion services such as the Robinson list. When you start the process on the web, you will have to choose whether you want to make the complaint or on paper or through the Internet. If you go by the electronic method, You will have to identify yourself as a citizen using the Cl@see permanent, Cl@ve pin, DNIE, Digital certificate or the equivalent of another EU country. Now, you just have to fill out the form of the website. In it, you have to start with your personal data, the data of the claimed company, an explanation of the facts that have happened, and the page where the recording is attached. If you don’t know the company you have called you, you can put it as A stranger. After completing the form you will need to sign it with the program of Autofirms. In Xataka Basics | Tips to stop receiving junk emails and finishing your email account spam

Airtificial will manufacture parts of the first Spanish rocket at its Jerez plant

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Two of the most popular names of the Spanish high -tech industry have joined their paths. Airtificial, whose factory we visited a few years ago for the presentation of The first hyperloop capsulewill manufacture from now on reusable components for the first Spanish rocket, Miura 5 of PLD Space. Jerez composite. From the dream of magnetic levitation in vacuum tubes to the much more tangible reality of access to space. Aerospace & Defense Airtificial has agreed manufacture at its headquarters A series of composite material panels for PLD Space. They are, specifically, shields for the nozzles of the new Treprel-C engines. Critical elements that serve as a structural support, channeling the thrust of the engines to avoid vibrations that deformed the nozzles, and at the same time of thermal insulation, acting as a barrier that protects the rest of the systems of the lock of the heat of combustion. Why anestificial. The new PLD Space provider has 30 years of composite experience, a more light material than the metal that will reduce the weight of the Miura 5. In the space industry, less weight means greater efficiency and more load to orbit with the same fuel. In 2018, Airtificial acquired international fame after the presentation of Quintero One, a 30 -meter capsule made in carbon fiber compound material. It was a Hyperlooptt design, one of the companies that tried to materialize high -speed transportation promoted by Elon Musk. Today Hyperloop is considered One of the great technological failures of the last decade. Although Hyperlooptt continues to try, Virgin Hyperloop One closed, forcing the Spanish Zelleros to make adjustments. Years later, Airtificial has made the leap to the space industry. Miura 5 is not a promise. PLD Space has A detailed plan to become the European rocket factoryand the pieces begin to fit. After the debut flight of Miura 1, the Miura 5 of 34 meters high and five engines in its first stage is taking shape. Although your body is made of aluminum, it uses composed materials in areas such as cofia or the covers of the engines, which will be key For your future reusable version: PLD Space will try to recover the first stage of Miura 5 after the shock, and on this depends on the resistance of the components. The company is immersed in the qualification of the new Treprel-C engines, which will burn bioqueroseno and liquid oxygen. It is the first time they develop Rocket engines with turbobombs in Spain. The confidence in the project is such that there is already a date marked in red on the calendar to see the first Miura 5. The CEO Raúl Torres It is optimistic: “December 15 of this year. That is day D”. Images | Hyperlooptt, PLD Space In Xataka | This is the Spanish rocket Miura 5: Pld Space has presented it in images and hints that version 1.2 can land

Spanish stadiums seek money desperately, and it is not by whim. 19 days of business a year are no longer enough

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The City has just signed the one who wants. The Al-Hilal has paid Neymar more than 100 million a year. Chelsea spends 300 million in a summer and nothing happens. And meanwhile, Real Madrid has to convert the Bernabéu into a shopping center with retractable grass to try to keep up. This is the story that nobody tells when he talks about Why are Spanish stadiums transforming into money 365 days a year. It is not so much innovation as survival. The problem began when the Premier League began to distribute 2,000 million a year only in television rights. Then the clubs arrived. The City, the PSG, the Newcastle. Then Arabia Saudi appeared offering contracts that make the gulf sheikhs look poor. Spanish clubs look at their income and make accounts. The last of the Premier enters more on television than the Liga room. Nottingham Forest can pay wages that Sevilla or Valencia cannot be allowed. And when they try to compete for a decent player, a Saudi club appears offering the triple. The solution? Squeeze the stadium to the last drop. Concerts, weddings, tours, restaurants, hamburger competitions, whatever. Because 19 League games a year no longer give to pay the squad of a half -table team. The Valencian metaphor The Roig Arena is about to open its doors and already has A long list of confirmed events. It will be the largest covered pavilion in Spain, with capacity for 18,600 people in concerts. Juan Roig, owner of Mercadona, has set 280 million pocket to make it come true. Six kilometers, on the other side of Valencia, is the skeleton of the Nou Mestalla. Abandoned for 16 yearsin an uncomfortable limbo for all – club, hobby, city, town hall – but it’s too late to reculate. The works have just resumed because there was no other. Among those six kilometers there is an uncomfortable reality: Roig Arena is going to eat the event market that Valencia CF needs desperately. The club expects the Nou Mestalla, when finished in 2027, it works 365 days a year to generate the income that allows you to survive. But by then, Roig’s pavilion will have already taken many of the concerts and large events that are not outdoor football. Roig’s play is brilliant: A multipurpose space that does not depend on signings, or qualify for Europe, or compete with petrodollars. It only needs people to want to see Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny OA who visits Valencia now that he will have an ideal place. And that fits wonderful with the culture of the event that prevails in this era. Meanwhile, Peter Lim has Valencia on the edge of the abyss, with a half -stadium to make when open will be late for the party. And there go the shots of this story. How Spanish football has discovered that the sports brick business does not work as before. And cases in Madrid and Barcelona Real Madrid had everything calculated. Great 1,347 million in the new Santiago Bernabéu was not a whim, it was a need to continue competing against City or PSG. The plan was brilliant: concerts all year, A 900 square meters StarbucksTours to 30 euros per head. Taylor Swift left 9 million in two nights. At that rate, you amortized the investment and you have to sign. But they did not pay enough attention to a detail. The neighbors. 95 decibels when the legal limit is 58. 24 complaints that did not see enough the club’s proposal to sound free home. 2.6 million in fines. Concerts suspended until further notice. The most expensive stadium in Europe cannot do its business because the houses are 30 meters. And without that extra income, how do you compete with petrodollars? Atlético tried to capture that value thanks to the fact that its stadium, the Metropolitan, is in the middle of nowhere compared to the central Bernabéu. And with it it started until The threats of complaints arrived. But for now he will shelter ten concerts by Bad Bunny, a million admitted by concert. Meanwhile, Barça is getting 1,450 million at Camp Nou after losing 100 million a year playing in Montjuïc. Is The perfect paradox: You need to spend money that you don’t have to generate money you need to compete with clubs that have infinite money. The plan is that the new stadium Generate 247 million annually. Not only football, of course. Of everything that can be monetized. Because with 19 League games it does not even arrive to pay the interests of the Goldman Sachs credit. The boom that everyone wants to hunt Spain He invoiced 725 million in live music in 2024. Third consecutive record. Fomo and social networks are gasoline. The clubs look at these figures and salivan. If they can stay with a piece of that cake, they can sign a decent side. Maybe. That’s why everyone looks at their stadiums thinking: how is more paste of these bricks? Betis is reforming Villamarín, not to give many concerts or host a shopping center, but for Give a hotel, a well -being center and a clinic. Athletic studies what to do with San Mamés while throwing very expensive entrances in exchange for a postin experience, talk with a player and manager included. Everyone has understood the message: or you find new sources of income or become the quarry of the Saudis. The stadiums of the future will not be football stadiums that also do other things. Will be multipurpose spaces where football is occasionally played. Juan Roig has understood it perfectly. That is why he builds pavilions, he does not buy soccer clubs. He could rescue Valencia CF – his brother has Villarreal and is managing it wonderfully – but that movement has not been given and already seems completely discarded. Another without running out presided over the club in the nineties and came out regular. The clubs that understood this in time may survive. Those who continue to think that … Read more

The Spanish bank seemed bored for the bag, but its last five years is superior to Apple and Microsoft

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Sabadell has risen more than 1,000% in the stock market in the last five years. Santander, 370%. Caixabank, 359%. BBVA, 492% Meanwhile, Apple – during most of this time, the most valuable company in the world – has grown 82% in the same period. Microsoft, 120%. The Nvidia of records1,267%. Why is it important. The Spanish bank has gone from being the ugly duckling of the stock market to star in one of the largest revaluation of the European market. This turn breaks the dominant story on a supposedly mature, boring and more narrow margins sector. The transformation has been silent but brutal. With the world of investment looking towards AI and technological ones, Spanish banks have multiplied their stock market capitalization without making too much noise. The context. It is true that the reference of five years has coincides with the minimums of the pandemic, when the IBEX 35 touched the 6,100 points in March 2020. But even taking references prior to Covid, the climbs remain spectacular. The interest rates They have been the final catalyst. After more than a decade with negative types that suffocated the bank margins, the turn of the ECB has returned the profitability to the traditional business: to capture cheap deposits and lend expensive. To contextualize: S&P 500 has risen 84% in the same period. The Nasdaq, 116%. Gold, 78%. Yes, but. This stock market explosion has gone quite unnoticed by the general public. The dominant narrative remains the one that speaks of traditional banking as a mature sector with Fintech and Neobancos competitive pressure. The reality is that traditional Spanish banks have generated returns that exceed many of the most celebrated technology. And now what. It remains to know if this rally still has a tour or if it has already touched the roof. With interest rates stabilizing and the Spanish economy showing some deceleration, it is possible that the best has already happened. But the banking sector has demonstrated something along the way: the boring can be very profitable. In Xataka | Revolution is not just a threat to traditional banks. Now it is also for Teleoperators Outstanding image | Joel Filipe

Spanish wine is going through an existential crisis and for producers the problem is simple: too cheap

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The end of drought has shaken the pendulum of agricultural production, taking ahead the hopes that many had in this harvest. The productivity recovery It has arrived accompanied by a decrease in the prices of a variety of products in the sector. Among them, the grapes used for the elaboration of various types of wine. Protest in front of AECAVA. A few days ago, grape -producing farmers from different communities They organized a protest In front of the headquarters of the Association of Cava (AECAVA) Association in Sant Sadurní D’Alcoia, Barcelona. They did it in order to demand sufficient prices to cover, at least, production costs. 20% more grapes. The protest occurred while the harvest of some of the grape varieties began. The sector estimates that this year will be an increase in grape production, with some farmers calculating a 20% increase With respect to the 2024 harvest. This would be the effect of the recovery of the sector after a drought that affected very diverse crops and left several crops on the edge of the collapse. The situation is now very different thanks to the rains we saw between the past autumn and this spring and even in part of the summer. Double edge weapon. Despite this, this improvement threats becoming a double -edged sword at the fall in prices that the agricultural sector now denounces. The increase in production and static demand involves lower prices, so much that the sector fears not being able to cover production costs. Almost at half price. As explained from the Valencian Association of Farmersthe first offers that wineters have received this year for the conventional grape kilogram is € 0.45, € 0.50 in the case of the grape for the production of “ecological” wine. These figures would represent a price drop of about 50% compared to last year’s prices, € 0.87/kg in conventional grapes and € 1/kg in “ecological” production. Harvest recovery (something we are Seeing in various crops) It would be the reason for this collapse in prices, but producers warn that this recovery does not affect all crops. The field in areas such as the Valencian Community or Extremadura, stand out, maintain a limited yield at 10.5 tons per hectare. A recovery that is not so much. From the winemaker, emphasis is placed on the so long -awaited harvest recovery after drought is not, much less, assured. Some diseases that affect the vine, such as mildewthey are putting a harvest still in the process of maturation in some regions. To this we must add the effects, even to be determined, of a especially intense and lasting heat wave. A heat wave capable to put at risk the process of maturation of plants but has also come accompanied by a series of fires Especially devastating in areas such as Galicia, Extremadura, and Castilla y León. In Xataka | The great alcohol crisis has reached the champagne. And the sector has a theory: we do not find reasons to celebrate Image | Ángela Llop, CC by-SA 4.0

The great Spanish rail giant had in his hands “the contract of the century.” Until France appeared

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It has been called “the contract of the century.” And it has not been for anything. CAF, the great Spanish rail giant, should be the winner of a huge contract to nurture the Belgian SNCB of trains that circulate on the conventional roads of the country. That is, by “the Belgian Renfe.” A contract that could reach 3,400 million euros. A contract that, now, is in the air after the claims of the French Alstom. “The contract of the century”. This has been called the pre -agreement between the Belgian SNCB and the Spanish CAF, confirmed only a few weeks ago by both companies In a statement in which the following was read: The Board of Directors of NMBS (SNCB-National Society of the Belgian Railways), taking into consideration the resolution of the State Council, has confirmed in this day CAF as preferred bidder of the contract for the development, manufacture and supply of the AM30 trains. In this way, the approval is given to continue the purchase process with the selected company, with the objective of closing the final adjudication of said Framework Agreement. This is a framework agreement with a maximum scope of units for 170,000 places, with an initial base commitment of 1,695 million euros (units for 54,000 places) in case of finally closing the agreement. French resource. This pre -agreement that includes a first operation of almost 1.7 billion euros and that could be folded in the future with the delivery of more trains for renew up to 50% of the fleet From the Belgian transport company, it has been appealed by Alstom, a French company that had also appeared to the contest. Guipuzkoa news He explains that the French company has launched the appeal to try to stop the contract, with the objective that this famous “contract of the century” falls on them, understanding that its offer was better than the Spanish proposal. What do they defend? In the Basque newspaper it is pointed out that Alstom defends its best position because the offer was 107 million euros cheaper than the Spanish proposal and that, in addition, they assured that Belgian labor would be used, which should be an argument of weight when it comes to being the chosen ones. Alstom expected their witch and charlei plants that employ 1,500 people to be decisive when obtaining the contract, they explain in Expansion. The situation is not new. Last April, the Belgium Council suspended the award and forced CNCB to return to the process, noting that the contract had not been awarded with total transparency. Human Rights. After that first closed door, CNCB once again chosen CAF as an ideal company to deliver the trains with which the Belgian fleet will be renewed. In their new report they pointed out that “European regulation prevents considering local presence factors in public procurement,” they explain in Expansion. But, in addition, in the review of the process, the Belgian court asked CAF to demonstrate that its activities meet “With international law and human rights”. Because? Because CAF works on a light subway line in Jerusalem that extends to Palestinian territories occupied by Israel. Yes indeed, In the Basque newspaper They emphasize that the Belgian Mobility and Climate Minister came to remove iron from this matter, highlighting that the country itself maintains diplomatic and economic relations with Israel. A thorny matter. The participation of CAF in the Light Metro of Jerusalem has raised Polvareda and is a stone more than the company has been found when receiving the so -called “contract of the century.” Amnesty International and Other associations In defense of the Palestinian people they demand that CAF leave the Israeli project. The minister on his side. For now, what has been defended by CNCB (and even Belgian minister himself) is that Not only should you look at the initial cost of the project. According to its reports, the Spanish proposal will mean savings with the passage of time to Belgian accounts since CAF trains consume less energy than those of Alstom. Specifically, it is ensured that the Spanish rolling material improves by 4% the technical criteria of the French company, taking into account the sale price of them but also the consumption of the trains provided, the conditions of the purchase contract and the calendar of deliveries to which CAF is compromised. Photo | CAF In Xataka | “Whoever wants to come, to invest”: Ouigo wanted to enter the Madrid-Galicia bird but it already sees it impossible before 2030

Ryanair is abandoning small airports in France. There is an unexpected beneficiary: a Spanish airline

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France is the queen of world tourism. Spain is close, but the neighboring country moved In 2024 almost 90 million visitors. A good part of them depend on the plane to arrive, and the problem is that they will soon pay more money to leave. The reason? A “solidarity tax”. And Ryanair has not been funny. So little that will leave some routes in winter. On the other side of the door, ready to collect the witness, was a Spanish airline. Volotea. Taxes. The trigger is the TSBA. This is the abbreviation of ‘Taxe de Solidarité Sur Les Billets d’Avion’, a tax applied in France to the tickets. It is the French authorities that set the amount of tax with the aim of financing international aid programs or to promote ecological measures. A few months ago, that tax experienced an increase of 180% and, although It depends on the flightdistance and plane, in a Economic flight Within France or Europe, the rate went from 2.66 euros to 9.5 euros. Other countries have other rates and in Spain, for example, there is one that applies to the use of infrastructure, security, shipping and other services that will rise about 68 cents per passenger as of March 1, 2026. It is a 6.5%rise, much lower than French. But well, as we say, Italy, Germany or Netherlands also have their rates. Leave. Ryanair comes into play here. The airline, the largest in Europe by fleet, considers that they are excessive and threatened to state that the increase will make many routes unfeasible. In a nutshell: trips to regional airports to small and medium -sized cities will not be so profitable by reducing the margins of these Airlines ‘Low Cost’ and, therefore, it would cease to make sense to keep them. And so it has been. As we read in Radar TravelRyanair will completely retire from Strasbourg, Brive-La-Gaillarde and Bergerac airports from this winter. In total, it will cut 25 routes and 750,000 seats on those dates, reducing its operations in France by 13%. Proper names. The consequences are devastating for the affected cities: Brive loses routes such as London-Stansted. Strasbourg loses links with Porto and Agadir. Bergerac will lose 33% of the activity, which can even touch the airport. They are the most affected, but other larger airports such as those of Toulouse, Marseille or Beauvais in Paris will also have activity cuts. “Unless the government eliminates this unfair air tax, Ryanair’s capacity and investment in France will inevitably redirect to more competitive European markets such as Sweden, Hungary or part of Italy, where governments are eliminating air taxes to stimulate traffic, tourism, employment and economic recovery,” Comment The CCO of Ryanair, Jason McGuinness. Volotea. This decision has resonated at the Volotea offices, a low -cost Spanish airline that bases its business on connecting small and medium -sized cities in Europe. They are those that do not usually cover the big companies, with 420 Routes in 2025reaching up to 100 cities in 18 European countries. Two names that we have already commented and that covers volotea are those of Marseille and Toulouse. And, how we read in Hosteltur And that Volotea itself collects in its press section, the withdrawal of Ryanair leaves room for the Spanish to stay with the connections of Strasbourg with Agadir (Morocco) and Porto, with the intention of creating 70 jobs to operate. “I don’t want money”. Thus, from this new pulse of Ryanair to the authorities of a country, the Spanish company benefits. And it is a sum and continues in a particular battle that Ryanair undertakes when the margins are at stake, such as when the controversial CEO of the company, Michael O’Learyconfirmed that aspires that passengers fly without suitcaseseven when of the 13,400 million euros that entered 2024, 4,299 million come from Extras how to fly with a cabin suitcase or choose a seat. Images | CJP24 In Xataka | The great secret of Ryanair’s success is that he does not earn money to fly: he does so squeezing you in everything else

Spring rains have generated an unexpected problem to Spanish farmers: Cereal too cheap

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Cereal cultivation continues to live convulsive times. Like many other crops, cereals suffered the consequences of last droughta drought that came to put the sector against the sector in 2023, transforming the dream of become the barn of Europe In a bitter awakening. Prices fall. Now the lament of the sector comes from another place: prices, collapsed after the recovery of the offer, a consequence of the recovery of production. A recovery that could hardly have occurred without a hydrological year as favorable as that of 2024-25. However, it never rains to everyone’s taste. From León. Perhaps the best example we find In the Leon Lonja. There last week the price of cereals such as wheat, rye or oatmeal saw slight falls in prices. The problem is more pressing if we consider the price two years ago: € 247/t. This implies that, in the last two years the price of cereal has dropped by more than 20%. Oats, in free fall. Another striking fall It has been oatmeal: if two years ago the price of this cereal was in the € 285/t, the price has dropped from then to € 136/t, 52.3% less. A year ago the price was € 183/t, which implies that only this year the drop in the price has been around 26%. Corn, the exception. Corn is the only cereal that seems to escape this trend. Their prices remained stable in fish markets such as León, while getting up in others, Like Salamanca. Lost opportunity A fall to which the sector has responded with pessimism since in the province the harvest is already practically finished. Farmers point out that these prices barely serve costs and They talk about “Lost Opportunity” When referring to this campaign. Supply and demand. The sector indicates the origin of the problem in a simple equation, that of supply and demand. Prices have fallen significantly since 2023, when the drought put in the middle of the agricultural sector against the ropes: the absence of rains and restrictions limited agricultural production. Now, production has recovered, but the problems continue. The increase in supply has not been equated with greater demand, which has facilitated a collapse in prices. To the precarious situation other external factors must be added, such as changes in international trade patterns, among which They are included The new tariff war between the United States and Europe, a conflict still to be resolved that adds firewood to the fire in the form of uncertainty. In Xataka | Before increasingly hard droughts, we are looking for answers in something discarded 10,000 years ago: perennial cereals Image | Heyzeus I write

The horchata is one of the staples of the Spanish summer. Now faces an existential threat in Valencia: pests

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As soon as the heat squeezes in summer, there is no more emblematic image in the Valencian Community than terraces full of high and cold horchata vessels: few drinks better represent the Mediterranean identity. But after that refreshing tradition a crop as fragile as essential is hidden: the chufa. A stain expanding. For years, this small tuber has been the economic engine of much of the Valencian garden. Its cultivation, located mainly in L’Horta Nord, not only gives flavor to summer, but also work, identity and landscape. However, As denounced by the Valencian Association of Farmers (Ava-Asaja)the cultivation of the chufa is going through an unprecedented crisis: despite the high demand and the stability of prices at origin, profitability collapses. In data. The situation is clear: in just a decade, production costs have risen 40 %, while productivity has fallen by 25 %, As explained in the press releaseAs a consequence, this year a thousand hanegades have been cultivated less than the previous one, which represents a 15 % reduction in the surface dedicated to the chufa. The Chufa de Valencia is cultivated in some 16 municipalities of L’Horta Nord, where They produce approximately 5.3 million kilos of chufa Dry a year, of which 90 % have a denomination of origin. In total, the crop occupies about 600 hectares with an estimated production of 7,300 tons. Although the figures may seem modest nationwide, the chufa is a characteristic culture of the area and key to hundreds of Valencian families. A plague with fifteen years of history. One of the main factors that Chufa production is putting in check is the disease known as “black spot.” This condition, which is manifested in the skin of the tuber, reduces its commercial value and multiplies the destroys (product that must be discarded in the dryers for not complying with the standards). First detected for fifteen years – coinciding with the first plantations of African chufa seeds on Valencian soil, According to Ava-Asaja-, the disease is still well characterized. In statements collected by Europa PressThe Agrarian Organization regrets that the Ministry of Agriculture has not provided the sector with “sufficient information about the type of disease, the causes of its introduction or the effective methods to combat it”. Therefore, they ask the Valencian Institute for Agricultural Research (IVIA) to intensify their studies to improve the control of this plague, whose incidence is increasing. A weed that sweeps everything. To the threat of black spot is added a more recent but equally worrying problem: the appearance of an invasive weed in the Chufa fields. As Ava-Assaja has denounced-In information also collected by Levante-EMV-, This species could have been introduced through chufas from third countries prosecuted in laundries of the Valencian garden. The difficulty of this problem is that the weed has the same vegetative cycle as the chufa, which prevents using herbicides without damaging the crop. In addition, its manual extraction is ineffective, since unmovered fragments can re -root the following year. “Being a more vigorous plant than cultivation, you can infest whole fields,” The Agrarian Organization to the Valencian media has warned. The result is devastating: lower performance, more manual work without results and, in many cases, fields that must cease to be temporarily cultivated by the impossibility of eradicating the plague. The future of crop, at stake. Given this scenario, Ava-Asaja has asked administrations an urgent and sustained action plan in time. The proposal includes short -term measures to contain immediate damage, as well as a long -term strategy to guarantee the viability of the crop: new phytosanitary solutions, biological research, control of imported material and aids to compensate for cost overruns. Antonio José Gimeno, responsible for the Sector of Chufa in Av-Asaja, The Levante has been clear in the middle: “If the citizens want to have a living garden, crops such as the chufa must have a dignified and lasting profitability. And that necessarily goes through solving problems as pressing as the black spot and this invasive herb that are reducing productivity to historical minimums.” But is this crisis reversible? Yes, but time runs. The crop still has a future thanks to its economic value and the growing national and international demand. Horchata, healthy eating, natural cosmetics … All these sectors trust the Valencian Chufa. But without production, there will be no raw material. As Gimeno said: “Little will it serve that demand and price are maintained if we do not manage to get sufficient production in the fields.” A warning beyond the chufa. The chufa crisis is not an isolated case. It is the sign of what can happen when the primary sector does not have the investment, research and policies necessary to protect it. What happens today with this tuber can be repeated tomorrow with other crops if it does not act on time. Keeping alive the garden is not just a matter of profitability: it is preserving a landscape, a way of life and a cultural heritage that has defined the Valencian Community for centuries. Image | Dorieo Xataka | Every summer fires ravage to Spain. There is a usual guilty that goes unnoticed: old tractors

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