The Government moves to strengthen the international presence of Catalan companies

The Catalan agri-food sector faces a new international trade scenario shaped by US tariffs. In this context the President of the Government of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, announced this week an immediate, structural response to strengthen the overseas competitiveness of Catalan companies.

The Government has activated grants of up to €90,000 to boost exports, diversify markets and support business growth. These are lines managed by ACCIÓ covering multi-location programmes, international promotion, growth and strategic change, as well as the Internationalisation Vouchers. The aim is to support companies at a moment of maximum competitive pressure.

Wine, cava and olive oil, along with other industrial sectors, have been particularly hard hit by the new US tariffs, set at 15%. Despite this context, Catalan exports grew 1.4% in the first half of 2025, i and agri-food grew by more than 7%, showing the strength and resilience of Catalonia's business base.

The new internationalisation strategy for the Catalan economy for 2026-2030 aims to widen the export base and diversify companies' global presence. The targets set also include adding 2,000 new exporting companies and reaching 3,500 companies with subsidiaries abroad by 2030.

President Salvador Illa stressed the importance of public-private collaboration and of coordination between administrations, companies and social partners. This shared vision will take shape in the new export start-up programme, available from January, which seeks to encourage companies beginning to open up to international markets to keep going.

Adapting Catalonia's business base to the new international context is key. With the 2026-2030 internationalisation strategy for the Catalan economy we take another step towards running Catalonia's international economic engine at full capacity. pic.twitter.com/w3k2yF2YyW

— Salvador Illa Roca (@salvadorilla) September 8, 2025

The agri-food sector is one of the pillars of the Catalan economy and an ambassador for the Catalonia brand worldwide. Prodeca, in coordination with ACCIÓ and the Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, will keep working to support the sector's companies in the face of new challenges and to open opportunities in strategic markets around the world.

As President Salvador Illa stressed, "it is time to run the international economic engine at full capacity". The Catalan agri-food sector knows well what that means: internationalising means diversifying, consolidating markets and strengthening the competitiveness of a business base with global ambitions. At Prodeca we work to take this collective effort even further and to keep Catalan products as ambassadors for Catalonia around the world.