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| Unió de Pagesos | |
|---|---|
| Name | Unió de Pagesos |
| Formation | 1970s |
| Headquarters | Catalonia |
| Leader title | President |
Unió de Pagesos is a Catalan farmers' union founded in the 1970s representing agricultural producers across Catalonia. It engages with regional institutions, trade federations, and rural organizations to influence agricultural policy, land use, and rural development. The union interacts with political parties, European institutions, and sectoral stakeholders to defend farmers' interests in contexts shaped by industrial groups, cooperatives, and market forces.
Unió de Pagesos emerged amid post-Franco agrarian reorganizations involving actors such as Generalitat de Catalunya, Francoist Spain transition figures, Josep Tarradellas, Convergència i Unió, Partit dels Socialistes de Catalunya, Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, Comunitat Europea, European Commission, Common Agricultural Policy, World Trade Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, International Labour Organization, Food and Agriculture Organization, Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, Basque Country, Andalusia, Aragon, Valencian Community. Early alliances and conflicts connected the union with entities like Cooperatives de Catalunya, Sindicat Agrícola, Caja Rural, La Caixa, Generalitat Valenciana, Fundación del Mediterráneo, Institut d'Estudis Catalans, Casa Milà, Ajuntament de Barcelona and agricultural research centers such as Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas and IRTA. The trajectory included responses to policies from Madrid, negotiations during Spain's accession to the European Union, and campaigns relating to the Common Agricultural Policy reforms of 1992, 2003 CAP reform, and 2013 CAP reform. Interactions with civil society involved Greenpeace, WWF, Amnesty International, and sectoral federations like Asaja, COAG, and UGT.
The union's internal governance has comprised local chapters tied to comarcal councils, provincial boards, and a national assembly interacting with institutions such as Generalitat de Catalunya departments, Ajuntament de Girona, Ajuntament de Lleida, Ajuntament de Tarragona, Diputació de Barcelona, Diputació de Lleida, Diputació de Girona and Diputació de Tarragona. Executive leadership forms links to international bodies like the European Farmers' Union and engages with research partners such as Universitat de Barcelona, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Universitat de Lleida, Pompeu Fabra University, and training centers like FELGTB educational initiatives. Committees handle issues spanning irrigation linked to Ebro River, land tenure involving Institut Català del Sòl, and animal health coordinated with Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación and agencies such as Agència Catalana de Seguretat Alimentària.
Advocacy positions have targeted policy instruments including Common Agricultural Policy, Tarifa Arancelaria, Trade Agreement between EU and Mercosur, NAFTA, and bilateral accords involving France, Portugal, Italy, Germany, and Belgium. The union lobbied regional assemblies like Parlament de Catalunya and national legislatures like the Cortes Generales on subsidies, rural development programs under LEADER and environmental measures related to Natura 2000, Ramsar Convention, and Kyoto Protocol. It has taken stances in dialogues with political parties such as Partido Popular, Ciudadanos, Podemos, Vox, Ciutadans, JxCat and with labor federations including UGT and CCOO over labor rules and seasonal migration policies touching European Court of Justice jurisprudence.
The union provides legal assistance, market intelligence, and training in collaboration with research institutes like IRTA, INIA, and universities such as Universitat de Barcelona and Universitat de Lleida. It organizes protests in plazas near institutions like Plaça Sant Jaume, coordinates strikes and roadblocks on routes connected to AP-7, interfaces with cooperative networks like Caja Rural and La Caixa for credit initiatives, and participates in trade fairs such as Fira de Barcelona, Fruit Attraction, and Salón de Gourmets. Services include negotiation of collective agreements applied with SEPE data, pest management advice aligned with European Food Safety Authority standards, and certification support for schemes like Denominación de Origen Protegida and Indicació Geogràfica Protegida.
Membership spans smallholders, family farms, and larger producers across comarcas including Alt Empordà, Baix Empordà, Garrigues, Segrià, Pla d'Urgell, Priorat, Penedès, Montsià, Terres de l'Ebre and urban-rural interfaces near Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, Tarragona. Demographic trends reflect aging similar to patterns reported by Eurostat and Instituto Nacional de Estadística, with generational renewal interacting with programs from European Commission rural funds and regional initiatives like Agència de Desenvolupament Rural de Catalunya. Membership cohorts engage in sectors represented by associations such as Federació d'Indústries and commodity groups for viticulture, olive oil, horticulture, cereal and livestock linked to markets in France, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, and Italy.
Controversies have arisen over strike tactics, roadblocks, and clashes with law enforcement coordinated by institutions like Mossos d'Esquadra and national police forces; disputes involved companies like Mercadona, Caprabo, Lidl, Carrefour and transporters represented by Asociación de Transporte. Legal disputes referenced tribunals including the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Catalunya, Audiencia Nacional, and the European Court of Human Rights. Debates over environmental regulation intersected with NGOs such as Ecologistas en Acción and SEO/BirdLife, while market conflicts touched multinational processors like Nestlé, Danone, PepsiCo and commodity traders such as Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland.
The union has shaped policy outcomes affecting irrigation infrastructure on the Ebro Delta, land consolidation in Pla de l'Estany, viticultural policy in Penedès and quality schemes in Priorat, influencing relations with export markets including France, Germany, United Kingdom, China, and United States. Its role in collective bargaining, participation in CAP negotiations, and coordination with research bodies like IRTA and CSIC have affected technological adoption, farm viability, and rural demographics, interacting with regional planning authorities such as Generalitat de Catalunya and European funding programs managed by the European Commission.
Category:Agricultural organisations based in Catalonia