It has been found that the variety currently produced in the Canary Islands, the Red Spanish, which at the time was chosen because of favourable climatic and productivity factors, is suffering from continuing degeneration, leading to marketing problems, mainly caused by its lack of homogeneity and low sugar content, failing to reach the recommended parameters for the European markets.
The programme's primary goal is to achieve improvements in the variety's plant material, as well as in the cultivation procedures used so far, with the introduction, for example, of greenhouses or micro-tunnels, and in the control of the fruit's commercial characteristics, including size, colour, flavour, etc., since the market, especially consumers of the tourism industry, demands larger pieces, containing more sugar and with a more yellow internal colour.
The possibility of introducing new varieties adapted to the conditions of the area and the demands of consumers is also being studied.
After several decades working with the same plant patterns, growers have to deal with weak plants that lack vitality, and in the future this could lead to lower productivity, that would endanger the continuity of production. The need for a more responsible use of phytosanitary products has also been identified; the goal is to reduce the level of residues on the crop as far as possible through various actions, including an improvement in the on-going training of producers, among other measures.
To achieve this objective, it will be necessary to have healthy and improved plants throughout the entire acreage in order to regenerate and boost the crop's marketing. To this end, it will be necessary to introduce greenhouses for the selection and implementation of cuttings that can subsequently be used by the grower.
Another issue addressed is the possibility of expanding the processing of fresh pineapple products, which would enhance the value of the current produce. The foundation for the development of the project has already been laid out, as the Government of El Hierro has the facilities and much of the machinery necessary to implement the processing of the fruit, and to offer such products to the final consumer.
This plan, to be implemented in the period 2015-2020, will require an investment of two million Euro, with funds from the new Rural Development Programme (RDP), managed by the Council of Agriculture of the Government of the Canary Islands, as well as from individual and collective investments.