The problem for the tomato is not that enters from the South, but North.

THIS IS THE STATEMENT OF TOMÁS GARCÍA AZCÁRATE AT THE INTERNATIONAL DAYS OF FAMILY FARMING HELD IN ALMERÍA.

The counselor in charge of coordinating economic analysis in the European Commission, Tomas Garcia Azcarate, has participated in the first International Conference on Family Farming held at the University of Almería (UAL), where he has indicated that the problem for the tomato market is not those that enter from the south, but from the north.

Azcárate indicated that the agri-food sector should be called into question "continuously" because a good campaign one year does not guarantee the same the following year. "We must remove the agricultural sector from its comfort room. There are guaranteed helps and supports, but today's success does not guarantee tomorrow's ", has pointed.

This senior community official, great expert in the Common Agricultural Policy (topic on which you have spoken in your speech), He gave as an example the situation of the tomato market. Has pointed out that, since ten years ago, the tomato in winter is characterized by the massive entrance of the productions of the north of Europe.

“What has characterized the market in the last ten years are the 500.000 more tons of Dutch tomato have entered. However, for years we've been looking in the rearview mirror, Morocco, which has evidently increased its production in 150.000 tons of export to Europe. That is the mirror in which we have to look at ourselves ", has exposed.

Together with Tomás García Azcárate, Laura Lorenzo participated in this first session, of the World Rural Forum and deputy global coordinator of the International Year of Family Farming 2014 from FAO and Professor Michael Cook, from the University of Missouri, United States.

Lorenzo pointed out that "family farming" is what is developed in Almería (here, the 80% of the farms are family-owned), but also that of a small herder in Kenya or a medium-sized farm in Brazil. In the world there are 2.500 million family farmers who produce the 70 percent of world food.

As stated by this expert, the feeding of humanity "is not being produced by the big multinationals", but family farmers from all continents.

Lorenzo also explained that this International Year should serve to fight rural poverty and reposition this type of agriculture at the center of agricultural policies, environmental and social issues on national agendas, identifying gaps and opportunities to promote a shift towards more equitable and balanced development.

The conferences are organized by the University of Almería, Cajamar, Coexphal, Aproa, the Spanish Association of Agricultural Economics, the Cajamar-UAL Chair of Economics and Agri-Food and numerous companies in the sector: Unicagroup, Murgiverde, Vicasol, Agroiris, ALMOST, Campoejido, Qualin Quality and Agroponiente.