Spanish asparagus arrives early on Mexican-dominated market

Although the volumes are still insignificant (2% of the total), the green asparagus campaign has started this week in Granada, one of the vegetable's most important production areas in Spain.

The campaign is starting very early this year, since packing plants don't normally start receiving the product until March.

"The spring temperatures, of 12 degrees Celsius at night and around 20 degrees during the day, as well as the absence of rainfall, have contributed to an acceleration of the production process," explains Francisco Delgado, manager of Los Gallombares. "Fortunately, this is also beneficial for the quality of the product, with larger calibres compared to the previous season," he adds.

However, the early arrival of Spanish asparagus means that the product is arriving on a European market which is currently fully dominated by Mexican asparagus. "There is now plenty of asparagus from Mexico on the shelves, with prices significantly lower than in the same period of the previous season," he affirms. "It is not encouraging to start the campaign with such prices, although we have the capacity to be more competitive, because we have lower transportation costs. Anyway, it might be better for Spanish exporters to delay exports by between two weeks and twenty days."

The asparagus production continues to grow each year in Granada, as for now, the product guarantees some interesting profit margins. Los Gallombares, the most important green asparagus producer and marketing cooperative in Spain, has increased its production area by 25% this season and now has over 2,000 hectares devoted to the crop.