Spain: Low prices for Latxa sheep's milk are compromising the Basque livestock sector

Published 2024년 12월 12일

Tridge summary

The article highlights the critical financial situation of Latxa sheep's milk producers, who are experiencing significant drops in net margin due to low prices, falling from 60 euros to 6 euros per sheep per year, and are faced with new climatic challenges and diseases. EHNE, an agricultural organization, has accused the cheese industry of not adhering to the Food Chain Law and has suspected potential breaches of Competition Law due to alleged price fixing. In response, EHNE has called for the implementation of measures to ensure the sector's sustainability, including fair prices for producers, increased transparency, and review of contracts to prevent abusive practices.

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Original content

The difficult situation faced by producers of Latxa sheep's milk for the Idiazabal and Roncal designations of origin, marked by prices that do not cover production costs, threatens the sustainability of livestock farms and the quality of the product. According to the latest data, the net margin of farmers has fallen dramatically, from 60 euros per sheep per year in 2021/2022 to just 6 euros in 2022/2023, a scenario that is aggravated by new climatic challenges, such as droughts and emerging diseases. Faced with this situation, EHNE has denounced that the cheese industry is not complying with the Food Chain Law, by placing milk prices at the level of white labels and underestimating the added value of a product with a designation of origin and tradition. It also warns of possible breaches of the Competition Law, pointing out dynamics of price agreements between the few industries that buy Latxa sheep's milk in the territory. EHNE's demands The agricultural organisation has demanded ...

Source: Agrodigital