The Association of Banana Producers Organizations of the Canary Islands (ASPROCAN) has requested that 100 per cent of the transportation costs of the Canary Islands Banana for 2023 be covered, as recognized by law, "and even more so when it represents an essential support for the continuity of the sector that is the engine of the Canary economy."

In a statement, the banana producers expressed "their deep discontent". They described the situation after the announcement last week of the call to access economic compensation for the expenses in the export transportation of Canary Islands Banana to the Peninsula as a missed opportunity.

The association recalled that last January before the Government of Spain decided not to articulate budgets for this year, the forecast was established among the central Executive, the Canary Government, and the sector to finally update the coverage of the aid to comply with the Economic and Fiscal Regime of the Canary Islands.

It meant an extension of the aid line, going from the 20 million euros budgeted for the expenses of 2022 to 30 million in 2023. With this extension, it complied with what is established in Article 7 of the law that regulates the Economic and Fiscal Regime of the Canary Islands about "financing a system of compensations that allows covering 100% of the effective cost of the transportation of goods between the Islands and the Peninsula."

However, in the call published last Friday in the Official State Gazette, this update of the compensations is not foreseen, which they consider "a decision that seriously harms the sector, given the increases in transportation costs along with the strong reduction of income from last year."

Despite this, they argue that if there is a will, "there are technical and legal ways to avoid this serious damage", so they urge the central and Canary administrations to seek alternative measures.

The president of Asprocan, Domingo Martín, has stated that the publication of the call without considering the update of the aid conditions "warns of an intention contrary to what was planned" and insists on the extension of the compensations to "cushion" the increase in cultivation expenses.

Asprocan has pointed out that in 2023, the trade of Canary Islands Bananas generated an economic impact of more than 500 million euros in the Islands. The sector employs 12,000 full-time employees and has a gross wage bill exceeding 200 million euros.

They point out that one thousand tons of Plátano de Canarias are sent daily to the Peninsula for ripening and marketing. They have recalled that the objective set in one of the points of the Canary agenda agreed between the Canary Coalition and the Central Government was to extend the aid in 2023 to cover 100% of the transportation costs.