The Spanish citrus sector will remember this season as one of its worst nightmares, recording the lowest prices in recent memory in the case of oranges. It has hardly rained in the Spanish Levant since September, especially in Valencia, and although the conditions are certainly not the most ideal, "nobody imagined the consequences to be so catastrophic," says Cristóbal Aguado, president of AVA ASAJA. "We have never suffered such severe quality problems or obtained such low prices."
Clementines have not been as strongly affected, although some varieties have suffered physiological alterations, like the 'bufat' (separation of the skin over the pulp) and/or reached small calibres, but in any case oranges got the worst part, as they have been hampered by both notably small calibres and by the 'clareta' (splitting of the skin). "The earliest orange varieties reached better results in terms of quality, despite there being some problems with calibres, but those who waited for the fruit to ripen a bit more harvested a lower quality fruit, which entailed worse prices," he explains.
The Valencian Institute for Agricultural Research (IVIA) is trying to determine the possible causes of the 'clareta', and although no results have been achieved yet, it has been suggested that it may be related to the soil's properties.
When situations like this one arise, many producers start looking for alternative crops, and if such alternatives are not found, the lands are simply abandoned to stop losing money. "While in 2013, Valencia was the province with the highest number of lands abandoned, this year's figures may be record-breaking," says Cristóbal Aguado.
The citrus industry needs to coordinate its activities
Representatives of the citrus sector have recently sent letters to the ministers of Economy and Agriculture and to the president of the Valencian Government, describing the current situation and requesting a series of fiscal and technical measures to be able to face the huge losses. They also asked for the cooperation of the town councils of citrus-producing municipalities.
In a parallel effort, "we are trying to bring together all parts of the sector involved, from producers and cooperatives to traders and distributors, to agree on coordination initiatives to reach the market and on marketing strategies targeted to final consumers."
Cristóbal Aguado is convinced that the Spanish citrus sector, with a production of over 6 million tonnes per year, "will have a better future if it adopts the strategies of other crops' agricultural organisations, such as concentration of supply, which has already shown to be effective for both growers and all other parts of the chain. We are convinced that the solution is to work together instead of each having to fight its own battles," he stated.
EC expected to enforce drastic measures against South African imports
The Spanish citrus sector agrees in considering imports of South African citrus as a potential hazard, as they could potentially introduce a pest still unknown in Europe, the "Black Spot". The EFSA also considered it a risk in its latest report.
"We have been protesting for several years, as the disease is occasionally detected in South African shipments. So far, the sector has not been satisfied with the proposals from the EC, and the measures taken just when the South African citrus campaign was coming to an end were deemed insufficient," he said.