Madrid, Feb 15 (EFE).- Farmers in Spain continued a nationwide protest for the 10th day on Thursday with a large rally outside the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in the capital Madrid.
Farmers are demanding changes to the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and calling on the local and national governments to take measures to ensure fair income amid rising production costs. Similar protests have been seen in countries across Europe in recent weeks.
Dozens of tractors that have formed protest convoys and roadblocks – severely disrupting traffic and food deliveries across the country – since Feb. 6 arrived at the ministry in central Madrid, where minister Luis Planas was due to meet with the heads of the largest agricultural trade unions.
“We need fair prices now, we need policies that mirror those of non-EU countries,” one protester told EFE.
“We need (the authorities) to remove the bureaucracy (…) as they are imposing on us. (The farmers) want to be in the field, they want to work and do what they know (…) They want to go out to the field to work, and they are not being allowed to,” she added.
While a government spokesperson said that “no significant incidents” had been reported, some demonstrators at the rally outside the agriculture ministry threw eggs at the building.
Apart from the rally in Madrid, several other demonstrations and roadblocks were reported in different parts of Spain on Thursday. EFE
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