The latest report on the development of Huelva's 2017/2018 berry campaign, which the Observatory of Prices and Markets of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Board of Andalucía made public, states that the weather conditions during Easter - week 13 - were very favorable for berry crops.
According to the report, the increase in maximum temperatures and solar radiation, coupled with the absence of rain, reduced the humidity of the environment, which allowed producers to collect much more product. As a result, the strawberry offer increased in Easter, after weeks of being low. In the five previous campaigns, an average of 48.5% of the total production expected for the entire campaign had been sold by week thirteen.
According to the report of the Observatory, in week twelve, producers were paid an average of 1.53 euro/ kilo of standard packed strawberries, i.e. the same as the week before. However, in week 13 (Easter week), the average price fell to 1.18 euro / kilos.
This decline is explained because, since the markets close on the holidays, there is an accumulation of fruit that drives prices down a bit.
According to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food of Germany, which is the reference for the Observatory, the average price of Spanish strawberries in German wholesale markets in week 13 of 2018 stood at 3.94 euro / kg, almost 86% higher than the price of the same week last year. Strawberries are experiencing a rebound in prices in German markets this week because the "bad weather in a large part of Europe is delaying local European strawberry production," according to the Observatory.
Raspberry
There wasn't much volume of raspberries in week twelve, but volumes improved in week 13, so the offer in the week of Easter continued to supply the market regularly.
In weeks 12 and 13 raspberry producers were paid an average price of 6.76 and 6.60 euro/ kilo, respectively. The average price so far this season stands at 6.45 euro/ kilo, which is better than the 5.81 euro/ kilo obtained in the same period of the previous campaign.
The raspberry harvest campaign started almost seven months ago and, according to estimates from the Observatory, producers have harvested half of the expected production. In the two previous campaigns, 51% of the campaign's total production had been sold by week thirteen, according to the Report.
Blueberry
Huelva's blueberry season usually begins in the middle of March, but this year there have been unfavorable weather conditions that have delayed the start of the campaign. Producers have been harvesting blueberry since the end of January, but in very small quantities.
In weeks 12 and 13 blueberry producers were paid an average price of 7.0 and 6.57 euro/ kilo, respectively. Both prices were lower than the prices obtained in the same weeks of the previous year.
Source: agrodiariohuelva.es