MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish farmers blocked major highways with their tractors for a second day and disrupted access to port terminals as anger spreads in Europe's countryside against high costs, bureaucracy and competition from non-EU countries.
"Some countries don't respect the rules, they don't have quality controls," said Juan, who grows lemons in Andalusia, and was on a blockade in front of the access to Malaga port.
Fed up by the market situation and encouraged by similar protests in other European countries, Spanish farmers took their tractors out of their barns on Tuesday, two days ahead of protests scheduled by the country's main farmers associations.
Over the past few weeks, farmers in European countries including Germany, France and Belgium have held protests that sometimes turned violent.
Farmers say demanding rules imposed on them by the EU to protect the environment make them less competitive than peers in other regions, such as Latin America or non-EU Europe.
Persons:
Juan, Inti Landauro, Emma Pinedo, Sharon Singleton
Organizations:
TVE, Farmers, European Commission
Locations:
MADRID, Europe's, Andalusia, Malaga, Germany, France, Belgium, EU, America, EU Europe