Spanish farmers in Spain are severely undervalued and regularly sidelined by large chains. The granddaughter of an onion farmer from Valencia shows the reality and goes viral with her message on social media.
The Spanish news site Niusdiario.es wrote last weekend about Luis Gimeno, an eighty-year-old onion farmer from Valencia. Over the years, he has seen how traditional agriculture has suffered from the massive imports by large supermarket chains.
Last Thursday, Gimeno had 4,000 kilos of onions and no buyer after the trader informed him at the last minute there was no demand for his product. After months of work growing the onions, the farmer had to see his hard work go to waste.
Granddaughter uses social media to highlight issues
Gimeno’s granddaughter, Marina shared his story via Instagram. The idea was to sell her grandfather’s harvest and earn back his investment. Although Marina is not an influencer with millions of followers, she still made an impact on social media.
Marina’s goal was not only to sell the harvest, but to show the lack of respect given to Spanish farmers. Her post received more than 15,000 likes. There were more than three thousand shares within and outside Spain.
Thousands of responses for the Spanish farmer
People in and outside Valencia responded en masse to her message. Luis Gimeno says: “I have no words for this. People have shown that good things are still being done and that we have enormous solidarity with each other. ” According to the family, local trade is still possible as long as we help each other.
“This work is tough and is hugely undervalued”
On Thursday, Luis found out his deal was cancelled. On Friday, Marina shared the message on Instagram. From the Saturday she has been helping to prepare all orders for the people who want to buy the onions. She has noticed how hard the work is, especially for someone aged 80.
“This work is grossly undervalued and it is not fair that it is so poorly paid.” After four days of hard work, the family is no longer selling the onions. Farmer Luis has recouped his investment and would like to donate the remaining stock to associations that can use this product.
His granddaughter Marina’s initiative has made visible the vulnerability and precarious situation of farmers and agriculture. On the other hand, she has shown that people’s solidarity can lead to positive outcomes.
