70% of Asturias' farms have closed: what comes next for Spain?

70% of Asturias' farms have closed: livestock farming is collapsing and food prices keep rising

A devastated livestock farmer from Asturias, in northern Spain, explained it this morning in a supermarket: 70% of the region's livestock farms have disappeared in recent years. He himself had to give up his business because it was impossible to make it profitable. His warning —"we are going to go hungry"— is not catastrophist exaggeration: it is the stark reality of a sector bleeding out while food imports and grocery inflation keep climbing.

Natural cause or geopolitical maneuver?

The livestock crisis in Asturias is no isolated case. While some pointed to Greenpeace's campaigns against pig farms as a possible strategy to eliminate European competition —paving the way for American and German products—, others point to a structural transformation of the sector. Lab-grown meat, promoted by Bill Gates as a "healthy, safe and cheap" alternative, is presented as the technological solution, but its viability and acceptance remain doubtful.

The debate over the future of food

Opinions are radically divided. On one side, those who believe traditional livestock farming is doomed and that food will increasingly depend on imports and synthetic products. On the other, those who see the mass closure of farms as a deliberate political decision: eliminating small producers to concentrate supply in large corporations. Meanwhile, analysts like Marc Vidal warn that food inflation will keep rising, and that depending on third countries may be a strategic risk.

Are we witnessing the beginning of the end of family farming in Spain? The Asturian farmer, at least, has already lived it firsthand.

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