"Spain: "We hope low apple prices will at least boost sales"

"About 70% of the harvest has already been carried out, namely Golden, Red Delicious and Gala varieties. Right now, we are harvesting Granny Smith and Fuji and will finish the harvest season in late November with the Pink Lady®," says Alex Creixell, manager of the Catalan firm Costa Brava Fruticultors. 

According to Creixell, the quality of the fruit so far is high, "as this year we have had the right conditions of moisture and sunshine. Moreover, calibres are generally larger than last season, which is very positive for the fruit's marketing."

However, this quality is not being rewarded with good prices, which are about 10% lower than last season.

"Prices are currently under a lot of pressure," says Creixell. "Despite us not being affected directly by the Russian embargo, because we don't export to this country, we are indirectly affected by the fact that there are about 800,000 more tonnes of fruit in Europe, which is the approximate volume that is annually shipped to Russia and which needs to find new destinations."

Within this context, Alex foresees a difficult campaign, although "we hope low apple prices will at least boost sales."

Under the COSTA BRAVA and GIROPOMA brands, Costa Brava Fruticultors sells 70% of its production to the domestic market, while the other 30% goes to destinations like the UK, the Persian Gulf and Central America in containers; "growing markets where demand is gradually increasing and which offer increasingly more attractive prices. In the case of Brazil, it is interesting for the sale of medium and small calibres that cannot be shipped to Russia, especially when it comes to Granny Smith and Royal Gala," he points out. 

You can visit Costa Brava Fruticultors at Fruit Attraction, Hall 5, Stand 5E01D.