Spanish producers and exporters gathered within the Spanish Federation of Fruit, Vegetable, Flower and Live Plant Producer and Exporter Associations (FEPEX) are once again attacking the Moroccan tomato. They denounce the low prices of producers in the kingdom.
As last year, the farmers and nomadic herders clashed again last Saturday near Tiznit. The battle was such that the local authorities had to intervene, promising the opposing camps a fair and appropriate solution.
The development program for the southern provinces of the Kingdom is progressing well. In the assessment presented by the government, several projects are under construction, others will be launched in 2021.
"Kartika" traffickers are obtaining large agricultural lands, installing unauthorized wells and overexploiting the rivers and springs of the Kingdom without authorization. Faced with the scale of the situation, NGOs in northern Morocco are sounding the alarm.
Water stress is real in Agadir, the leading exporting region for citrus fruits and early produce. Even though the Moroccan economy is largely dependent on the development of the agricultural sector, the current situation requires the deprivation of irrigation of the region’s farms by the dams, in order to meet the demand for drinking water of the population.
Unlike other products, agricultural product exports have recorded good performance during the health crisis due to the coronavirus , the Ministry of Agriculture said.
Thanks to the presence of Moroccan seasonal workers, the clementine harvest was successful in Corsica. "Without them, it’s a 40% loss in fruit," acknowledges François-Xavier Ceccoli, producer and president of the Corsica comptoir group, even though the health crisis has reduced sales by 20%.
Despite the difficult health situation the world is going through, the export of agricultural products continues to rise in Morocco. The prospects for this sector are also very encouraging.
The decision of the US Department of Commerce to apply preliminary countervailing duties of 23.46% on imports of phosphate fertilizers from Morocco has elicited a reaction from the OCP Group . It finds no basis for this imposition.
Operators in the fruit and vegetable processing sector will benefit from the new import substitution strategy of the Ministry of Industry. The Moroccan government has just adopted a draft decree to this effect.
Heavily burdened by the health crisis due to the coronavirus, street vendors are struggling to regain their balance since last March. Several of them, including Mohammed Grita, a fruit and vegetable merchant, are calling for government support during this ongoing crisis.
In order to successfully complete the next agricultural season, the Spanish government has engaged in discussions with the authorities of the Kingdom for the recruitment of Moroccan seasonal workers. Remains to find an agreement on the anti-Covid health protocol to be applied to these workers.