37 thousand euros for livestock hygiene and improvements to systems of production in Formentera

This morning, the president of the Formentera Island Council, Jaume Ferrer, alongside counsellor of Agriculture, Livestock, Hunting and Fishing, Santi Juan, signed a collaborative accord with the president of the Associació de Ramaders de Formentera (Formentera Stockbreeders Association, or ARF), Jaume Tur Roselló, pledging support for the island's ranching sector in terms of animal sanitation and improvements to production systems.

The agreement, which pledges 32,000€, the same amount as last year's, is now in its fourth year. This material assistance permits the island's stockbreeding sector to meet the costs of vaccination as well as annual anti-parasite treatments for sheep and goats, while the Stockbreeders Association likewise commits to maintaining proper sanitary conditions for livestock, including disinfection, pest and rodent control on its livestock farms. For the second consecutive year, this year's accord has also included pigs.

The Office of Agriculture will thus apportion approximately 4,800€ for medication and other purchases, bringing the total amount of money administered to the farming and livestock sector to almost 37 thousand euros.

The Formentera Stockbreeders Association, as the island's only ranching association, has pledged to employ a common sanitary system to assure sanitation and production improvements on its member farms.

Sanitation Defence Group (ADS, its acronym in Catalan) will provide its veterinary services for house calls, emergency services and two annual farm-visits, in addition to promoting sanitation for the raising of sheep, goats, pigs and other livestock. The ADS will also oversee the promotion of informational talks and other events.

The accord marks a continuation of the assistance given to stockbreeders in recent years, the object being to maintain Formentera's rural landscape and boost production of locally-grown products in Formentera.

The Formentera Stockbreeders Association The ARF was created in 1992 to work on one end towards improving, promoting and defending the interests of Formentera stockbreeders and ranchers, and on the other, towards maintaining and continuing to labour Formentera's farmland, simultaneously bettering the tourist image of the island.

It is the only association today that is working to support the farmland of Formentera, and its efforts include managing purchases of grain to sow in locations outside of the island, acquiring feed for association farms, transportation of materials with foreign-origins, purchasing fertilizers, assisting in the administration of subsidies provided by different public institutions, and contracting veterinary assistance either directly or indirectly, among others.

The members of the association's administrative team are not paid for their work, rather, their efforts are motivated entirely by the desire to maintain the only remaining stockbreeders association active. The association has 90 members.