As Fernández-Pacheco explained during the AREFLH board of directors meeting, “the fruit and vegetable sector is one of the most dynamic and organised within European agriculture, and its success depends on a specific and adapted budget within the CAP, which must be viewed as a strategic tool for food security, environmental sustainability, and rural cohesion.”
As president of AREFLH, he affirmed that the assembly is working to defend the sector in the negotiations of the next Multiannual Financial Framework 2028–2032, to ensure that the food sector continues to be considered strategic and a priority within the European Union. “We cannot allow our sector to be further weakened—not only by the many challenges it already faces—but also by an unfair and insufficient CAP for producers,” he stressed.
He reiterated that “the CAP must have a strong and robust budget that benefits Fruit and Vegetable Producer Organisations (F&V POs), who would then be better equipped to defend their interests and needs. Moreover, this budget must be flexible and independent from other funds in order to guarantee producers’ viability.”
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In this regard, the minister and president of the European fruit and vegetable lobby stated that “the independence of these funds will prevent the fragmentation of the single market and ensure cohesion and fair competition between regions, which have much to say based on their own productive realities.” He also highlighted the importance of safeguarding multiannual planning in the next framework, as this will provide producers with greater security when investing.
“In short, a new Multiannual Financial Framework that truly addresses the needs of fruit and vegetable producers and recognises water as one of the most urgent challenges facing European agriculture in order to remain competitive and profitable in international markets,” said Fernández-Pacheco, also serving as Andalusia’s agriculture minister—one of the regions represented in AREFLH.
Committed to European Institutions
In this regard, Fernández-Pacheco announced that AREFLH is making itself available to European institutions to contribute to this strategic debate with the aim of defending food sovereignty and ensuring the consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables across Europe.
During the board meeting, the president thanked producers and regions for their work over the past 25 years within the association, “always standing with the producers and defending fruit and vegetable marketers,” and stated that “in this new term, the interests and needs of the fruit and vegetable sector throughout Europe will continue to be represented as they have been, despite the many challenges we face.”
