"Although this is a product with lots of consumption in Spain, we are shipping half of our production to Portugal," explains Juan Giraldo, of Al-Andalus Fructus. This small entrepreneur in Seville affirms they can harvest between 3 and 4 trucks a day and that the fruit is as highly appreciated in the Portuguese market as in the Spanish one. "The advantage of Portugal is that they buy them as we harvest them, without the need for further handling, which is how they are demanded in other parts of Europe. Consequently, they end up being a bit cheaper," adds Giraldo.
Also, we cannot lose sight of the rising popularity of the watermelons produced by Morocco. "In recent years, those watermelons, which are very sweet, bigger than the Spanish varieties and with seeds, have been gaining ground, despite the fact that they have been expensive," explains Giraldo. As for the price of this product in the domestic market, each kilo is costing 0.12 Euro, compared to the 0.35 Euro that have been paid at this time in previous years. "It should be noted that there is more production this year. More has been planted because there was a shortage of seedless watermelons last year," clarifies Giraldo, and this would also explain the decline in prices.
For more information:
Juan Giraldo
Al-Andalus Fructus
Tel. +34 656 36 58 54