On 1 June, the European Commission's Tomato Forecast Working, which is composed of experts from the EU Member States that are responsible for the EC, will analyze in Brussels the market situation, the forecasts for next season, and the entry price regime of the tomatoes that the EU imports, especially from Morocco.
Regarding the market situation, FEPEX will discuss the increasing disturbance that the strong growth of imports from Morocco in the period between October and April is causing. According to data that the European Commission provided to the Expert Group, imports in October have grown from 4,903 tons in the 2000/2001 campaign, to 32,655 tons in the 2015/2016 season; and from 16,387 tons to 52,749 tons in November of the aforementioned respective campaigns.
This strong growth is maintained throughout all the months that are considered the Spanish sector's natural campaign period. The strong growth in tomato imports from Morocco also coincides with an elongation and strong growth in the Netherlands' cultivation area and production, which went from 1,133 hectares in 2000 to 1,770 hectares in 2016 and from producing 520,000 tons to 900,000 tons in the same period.
That's why FEPEX considers that restoring the effectiveness of the entry prices system and improving the market's crisis management measures, by distinguishing between round tomato, cherry tomato, and other specialties, as well as applying the provisions of the partnership Agreement between the EU and Morocco in order to avoid serious market disturbances, is of paramount importance.
The Tomato Forecasts Expert Group is one of the European Commission's advisory groups. It is part of the Vegetables, Oil and Spirits Products Civil Dialogue group. The Tomato Group is comprised of representatives of the producers and of the trade associations in the different Member States and in the Commission. The group meets twice a year and its main goals are to analyze the campaign's forecasts for the EU and the market situation. FEPEX is represented in the Tomato Group by Jose Hernandez, chairman of FEPEX Tomato, and Jose Maria Pozancos, director of FEPEX.
Source: fepex.es