Farmers block main highways across Catalonia in new day of protests

Farmers are again blocking roads throughout Catalonia on Tuesday to demand improvements in the sector.

Agricultural workers have spent weeks protesting not only in Catalonia but across Spain and Europe against excessive bureaucracy, drought measures that severely hampers their work, and the fight against what they consider to be unfair competition from imports outside the European Union.

On Tuesday morning, Girona farmers cut the AP-7 and the N-II highways in Pontós, where they threw boxes of vegetables and fruit from trucks.

Around 300 farmers have gathered near Soses to block the A-2 highway and do not rule out spending the night there to demand guarantees from administrations.

In Tàrrega, some 400 farmers with dozens of tractors from the platform Revolta Pagesa are blocking the A-2 highway. 

A meeting between the platform and the Catalan government is scheduled to take place on Tuesday afternoon, and depending on the outcome of the meeting, the blockade will either continue or be called off, according to Revolta Pagesa spokesperson Jordi Solé.

Demonstrators have also blocked the Coll d’Ares border crossing where they plan to mobilize with French farmers. The N-240 in Almacelles is also blocked.

To learn more about the farmers' protests, listen to the latest episode of our podcast, Filling the Sink. 

Why are farmers protesting?

Red tape is farmers' main concern across Europe. They argue that EU bureaucracy is overly complicated and time-consuming, leading to wasted resources on paperwork.  

Experts note that strict European regulations are affecting farmers' profit margins, with excessive controls on traceability, mandatory training, changing regulations, and challenges in processing subsidies. 

While European farmers struggle with burdensome red tape and adhere to strict environmental and food safety laws, a significant portion of the food consumed in the EU is sourced from countries outside the bloc at significantly lower prices. 

Catalonia is also experiencing its worst drought on record, and farmers have been facing water restrictions for nearly three years. 

Recently, the Catalan government declared a drought emergency in the Ter-Llobregat system, which supplies water to 6 million people. In this area, farmers have had to reduce irrigation by 80% and livestock farmers by half.