The farmers' union Unió de Pagesos (UP) has won the 2026 Catalan farmers' elections with 4,417 votes, representing 47% of the total, with 100% of the votes counted. JARC came in second with 2,822 votes, or 30% of the total. The other three parties, which will not obtain representation on the Catalan Farmers' Council, are Asaja with 11% of the vote, Asamblea Pagesa with 5%, and Unió de Petits Agricultors with 1.9%. There were 5% blank votes and almost 20% invalid votes, which were promoted by Revolta Pagesa. Voter turnout was 54.78%, with 11,709 voters. In the previous elections, in 2021, UP obtained 55% of the votes, and JARC 30.15%. Asaja, which obtained 11% of the votes, and UPA, with 2.5%, also failed to secure representation on the Agricultural Board. A total of 21,374 professionals were eligible to vote to choose the organizations and unions they wanted to represent them on government bodies, such as the Agricultural Board, for the next five years. Voting hours were from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Voters could choose between five candidates: Unió de Pagesos (UP) and JARC, which currently have representation on the Agricultural Board, and Asaja, Assemblea Pagesa, and UPA, which were aiming to reach the 15% of the votes needed for representation. Revolta Pagesa, for its part, called for a blank ballot.

While Pedro Sánchez was encouraging farmers and ranchers in Congress to trust the Mercosur trade agreement, half a thousand tractors blocked the center of Madrid in protest against that very same free trade agreement. This came two years after the agricultural sector brought the Spanish capital to a standstill due to the water shortage crisis.a malaise that uncovered many other problems—and this Wednesday they returned. Thousands of farmers from across the country demonstrated in front of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, called together by the Union of Unions of Farmers and Livestock Breeders and the National Union of Independent Primary Sector Associations.

The Catalan pig farming sector has accumulated losses of approximately €63 million so far due to the outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) detected in Vallès Occidental, according to calculations presented this Tuesday by the farmers' union Unió de Pagesos. Specifically, Catalan farmers have gone from earning approximately €20 per pig on average in 2025 to losing €36 per animal following the detection of the disease in Catalonia. These losses are due to the drop in pork prices and, above all, the loss of foreign markets outside the European Union, since pork is the country's main export industry within the agri-food sector. Furthermore, more than 61,000 head of cattle were quarantined in the province of Barcelona. European, Spanish, and international protocols against the spread of the ASF virus They limit the sale of meat abroad And they stipulate that the entire country will be considered affected by the epidemic until 12 months have passed without any new cases being detected. The fact that the sector has begun operating at a loss is causing concern among farmers. "What we can't do is produce at a loss for an extended period," said Rossend Saltiveri, head of the pig farming sector at Unió de Pagesos, at a press conference in Lleida.

Around 350 tractors blocked the C-25 highway (the Eix Transversal) on Monday morning to protest the overpopulation of wildlife in Catalonia, in a demonstration organized by the main agricultural organizations in the region. The mobilization, which began at 9 a.m., brought farmers to the streets to demand, above all, "control of overpopulations of game animals"—especially wild boar, rabbits, roe deer, and red deer—and a "review" of the Livestock Health Service. The march was supported by Unió de Pagesos, Revolta Pagesa, Asaja, and the Plataforma Pagesos o Conejos (Farmers or Rabbits Platform).

Rossend Saltiveri is the head of the pig farming sector at Unió de Pagesos (Farmers' Union). In recent days, he has been constantly on edge due to the outbreak of African swine fever in Collserola, a situation that has shaken the sector. For this reason, he is urging the government to "be decisive" and ensure "real surveillance." In fact, like the entire sector, Saltiveri considers it essential that the cases remain within the affected area and do not spread the disease to other places, and above all, that it does not occur on farms. For this reason, Saltiveri welcomes the Catalan government's request for assistance from the Military Emergency Unit (UME) of the army to control the perimeter of the affected area. In his opinion, "we cannot let our guard down," and any measure to contain the disease, such as preventing access to the area and even fining those who disobey and enter it, is welcome.

Movement at the top of two of the Catalan financial institutions. CaixaBank is renewing its board of directors, after the change of president on January 1, and putting an end to the presence of the former Bankia in the highest governing body of the bank, which is now chaired by Tomàs Muniesa in place of José Ignacio Goirigolzarri. CaixaBank has announced that five members of the board will be leaving: the former president José Ignacio Goirigolzarri and the independents Joaquín Ayuso, Francisco Javier Campo and Eva Castillo. José Serna, a director representing La Caixa, is also leaving. Rosa María García, Luis Álvarez, Bernardo Sánchez, Pablo Forero and José María Méndez will join. But this week, changes have also been announced at Caixa Ingenieros.