The presenter of the event, the journalist José María Martínduring his tour of the content of the ‘Agri-Food Yearbook ‘from Diario CÓRDOBA (which has had the sponsorship of the Provincial Council, the Imdeecthe City Council of Villanueva de Córdobathe UCOCajasur, Covap and Deza), has referred to one of the articles included in the publication, signed by the journalist as well. Juan M. Nizaand which is titled ‘This is how the sky goes, this is how the ground goes‘, headline that alludes to the close relationship that maintains the agricultural activity, the soilwith the climate behavior, heaven. And, on this Tuesday afternoon, the issue of time is no longer the recurring issue to start a polite conversation to decisively become the big issue to debate about.
The lack of waterits quality, the way to make facilities more efficient and how to adapt the countryside (agriculture and livestock) to these shortcomings were part of all the interventions that could be heard in Friendship Circleboth from the stand and in the pre- and post-presentation huddles. It doesn’t rain, there are no resources and water is needed so that a sector that is fundamental to the life of the province continues to exist and can look to the future with the same capacity for reinvention, updating and resilience as until now.
And the people who gathered at the presentation have experienced many droughts and many storms (climatic and other) that they have had to weather. Representatives of the agricultural and livestock sector such as Ignacio Fernandez de Mesa (Asaja), Miguel Cobos (UPA), Rafael Sánchez Door (Agri-Food Cooperatives), Ricardo Delgado (Covap), authorities involved in the sector, such as the delegate of Agriculture, Francisco Acosta; mayors, like that of Villanueva de Cordova, Isaac Reyeswhich has in the pasture the great economic and environmental treasure of its land, in addition to the engine researcher who in the matter represents the University of Cordobawith its rector, Manuel Torralboin front, and Rosa Gallardothe speaker and deeply knowledgeable, as she has shown, not only of the current reality but of the challenges that must be faced to continue succeeding in the uncertain future that looms over the agri-food world.
A future in which two sectors must play a fundamental role of the population in which the countryside has placed its hopes, the youths and the women. Tuesday’s event has also made this reality clear, because although the audience was quite heterogeneous, In terms of origin, it was also the same in terms of age. Still, the average age of people who represent the primary sector in Córdoba (and in Andalusia and Spain) are above 45 years. There has also been no lack of women at the presentation of the ‘Agri-food Yearbook of Córdoba’ (and the best and magnificent example was given by the speaker, who has been, precisely, the one who has drawn attention to the need to incorporate female population to the management of agricultural holdings, since it is still far from reaching men.
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And among all this, if someone had been knowledgeable in agrarian matters, they would have been among those present, only observing head nod movements of the attendees would have had a fairly clear idea of the issues that most concern the men and women who make the countryside their livelihood.
Issues, ignoring the aforementioned water problem, such as rise in prices of production costswhich is getting serious difficulties to quite a few livestock farms; the novelties (not always understood) imposed by the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP); the inexcusable need for renewal and technological innovation that allows us to gain competitiveness; Ensuring compliance with the Food Chain Law or guaranteeing that competition from third countries (non-EU) is carried out on equal terms (understood as such by health and traceability requirements) are also on the minds of farmers and ranchers in the province of Córdoba, for whom the yearbook becomes, as some of those present have pointed out to this newspaper, a excellent and detailed x-ray of the main sector of Cordoba.
Due to the strategic nature of the sector and because If the field is doing well, the province will be doing well too, At the Círculo de la Amistad, representatives from different areas of Córdoba society gathered, among which, above all, those from the agricultural organizationsbut also a broad representation of the university and the political universe of the province of Cordoba.
There have been all formations. For the PP, the president of the Andalusian Parliament has attended, Jesus Aguirre; that of the Provincial Council, Salvador Fuentesand the Government delegate, Adolfo Molinain addition to some councilors and mayors, led by the one from Córdoba, José María Bellido; for the PSOE, councilors like Antonio Hurtado either Carmen Gonzalezthe deputy Isabel Ambrosio or the provincial deputy Jose Alvarezto which we must add the Vox councilors, Rafael Saco and Yolanda Almagroalso a provincial deputy.
But among them, all dressed for the occasion, those who gave the touch of authenticity to the event have been businessmen in the province’s sector, who have been arriving, we suppose, as they finished their occupations, since they always have their minds occupied between heaven and ground.