Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-002549/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Mireia Borrás Pabón (PfE)
On 27 May 2025, AB Azucarera Iberia S.L. announced a collective redundancy plan which will affect 251 employees across all its sites in Spain. The plan involves closing the La Bañeza (León) sugar factory and converting the Miranda de Ebro (Burgos) sugar factory into a cane sugar refinery.
The sugar beet sector in Europe – and in Spain in particular – has been in profound crisis since 2018. High production costs, price volatility, imports and stagnation of sugar production and content as a result of reduced active substances are driving sugar production towards dire straits.
Considering the above:
- 1.Will the Commission change its current plant health policy in order to restore productivity and the sugar yield per hectare of sugar beet?
- 2.Does the Commission intend to improve the safety net and risk management under the common market organisation to avoid a market crisis like the one in 2017-2020?
- 3.Does the Commission intend to substantially change the preferential quotas under the future EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement to help stabilise the markets?
Submitted: 25.6.2025
Last updated: 2 July 2025