Planos destaca la importancia de la integración cooperativa en la economía global.

Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Plans, during his intervention in the Law

The cooperative sector provides direct employment to more than 122,000 people and has made significant efforts in recent years to increase its size and boost its sales abroad. This was stated by Luis Planos at the opening of the IX Congress of agricultural food cooperatives in Spain held in Palma. The minister emphasized that creating value for the partners should be the primary goal of cooperative activity. «Cooperatives make sense if they create value, wealth, and distribute it among all partners, partners, and the society in which they live.»

Luis Planos also appreciated the two main characteristics of cooperatives: human and territorial. «A cooperative never moves, it is always in the place where it was born, and this is essential in the global world we live in.»

The average size of cooperatives has doubled in recent years. In fact, the 20 largest cooperatives in Spain represent 22% of the sector’s turnover. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food on the integration of these types of associations with the recognition of prioritized associative entities (EAP), 4 new ones recognized in the last year making a total of 19 in Spain. Additionally, in the second quarter of this year, the first call will be made to promote the integration of associated entities -emro -autonomic Eemins. It will have a budget of 33.3 million euros.

Luis Plans, during the IX Congress of agricultural food cooperatives. | Moncloa Pool

Luis Planos acknowledged that islanders face challenges in accessing markets and incur higher production costs. «Therefore, today, due to the efforts of this government, the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) recognizes, for the first time, a differentiated treatment for the exploitation of the Balearic Islands.» It should also be noted that this community has seen a primary increase in direct aid, exceeding 27%, up to 35.5 million euros, in the 2023 campaign.

On the other hand, the Minister emphasized that, in the vision of European Union agriculture and food, the importance of the cooperative model is reflected in improving supply chain competitiveness. The agricultural sector is a priority for the EU, Plans assured, and for this, «it is necessary to have a CAP budget with our own legal personality, adequate and up to the strategic importance and challenges we face.»