The dairy industry paralyzes its factories starting this Thursday due to the transport strike

The National Federation of Dairy Industries (Fenil) has issued a statement announcing that as of this Thursday it will paralyze its activity as a result of the transport strike due to the lack of supplies in the factories, which annuls the packaging and storage capacity.

“The Spanish dairy industry is forced to suspend its transformation activity as a result of the transport strike that has been developing in the last three days”, they point out from Fenil.

The dairy employer assures that “factories have seen the supply of inputs necessary for the production of dairy products interrupted and also the transfer of the finished product to the distribution chains, for which the packaging, storage and management capacity of a highly perishable and essential food for daily consumption has been canceled”.

The same sources lament that this stoppage “is entailing unavoidable social, economic and environmental consequences, since will mean the suspension of the collection of milk in livestock farms and, above all, it puts at risk the supply of nutritionally basic products in people’s diets, such as milk and dairy products”.

Fenil points out in its statement that “this scenario is the result of helplessness and impotence of the carriers in the face of the actions of the so-called informative pickets that have blocked their activity.

For the association, “this decision to which the sector is forced to take can only be reversed if the right to mobility and safety of carriers who have not supported the strike is guaranteedand public order conflicts are avoided on Spanish roads, a circumstance that can be combined with respect for the right to strike”.

Fenil integrates more than 60 companies in the sector, which represent more than 95% of the national production of dairy products.

Unrest in the industry

The Spanish Federation of Food and Drink Industries (Fiab), which represents 30,000 companies in the sector, has also denounced serious problems in the functioning of the food chain due to the blockade that is taking place on some highways in our country due to the transport strike.

In this sense, the food and beverage industry has reported numerous incidents due to outages that are preventing the entry and exit of company vehicles, logistics centers and operations that supply raw materials, making it difficult to pick up goods essential for the operation of the food and beverage industry and, therefore, of the entire food chain.

Fiab stresses that companies view with special concern the limitations in the transport of fresh productsmany of them highly perishable, whose expiration threatens with an irreparable loss of the product, as well as the paralysis of companies due to lack of stock.

In the same way, he mentions that there is concern about restrictions on animal loads, which are leaving slaughterhouses with minimal activity and the consequent threat of shortages.

“If the minimum services are not being respected and the free circulation of vehicles is limited, the entire chain will see its production capacity reduced. Not only will it entail incalculable economic and social losses for companies, but it will also harm the consumer, who will not be able to access many products,” said Mauricio García de Quevedo, general director of Fiab.

Likewise, the Federation has pointed out that there are cases in which force is being used to prevent voluntary business activity, which is why it calls for the security forces to guarantee freedom of movement. In this sense, the industry appeals to the responsibility so that the right to strike does not imply the obstruction of the production of food and beverages.

Ukraine and energy

From the sector they recall the situation of tension that the food chain is currently experiencing due to the conflict over the invasion of Ukraine and the energy crisis. For this reason, they have asked the Executive for coordination between the Ministries of Agriculture, Interior and Transport to reach an urgent solution to avoid shortages and the consequent stoppage of activity, as well as scrupulous respect for legality.