Farmers drove tractors through the streets of Spanish cities, disrupting traffic on Thursday, as they intensified their protests against rising costs, bureaucracy and cheap competition from outside the European Union.
The protests, which began on Tuesday after spreading to other EU countries, are supported by the country's three main farmers' associations.
Dozens of tractors surrounded the regional Parliament in Barcelona after their drivers spent the night in the city center.
Farmers disrupted traffic in smaller towns across the country, including central Ávila, Vitória in the north and Antequera in the south.
Spanish farmers joined their counterparts in Germany, France, Italy and Belgium, where protests have sometimes turned violent.
Farmers across the EU claim that rules to protect the environment make them less competitive than farmers in other regions. They also say they are suffocated by taxes and bureaucracy.
Large quantities of imports from Ukraine, for which the EU has waived quotas and duties since Russia's invasion, and renewed negotiations to conclude a trade deal between the EU and Mercosur have fueled discontent over unfair competition.
Spain's Interior Ministry said police detained 12 people during Wednesday's protests, which included blockades of several major goods distribution centers. The government and retail associations do not foresee an imminent food shortage.
(Reporting by Inti Landauro)
Source: CNN Brasil
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