The plum campaign started 10 to 15 days later in Badajoz, the main producing area of the stone fruit in Europe. The delay in the harvest, together with a significant drop in volumes this year, is translating into considerable shortages and a very high demand at the start of the campaign.
"The demand for plums is very high at the moment," says José Aurelio García, manager of the cooperative Explum. "We had more volumes available at this time last year. The fall in the production has been very significant for the early varieties. Of the total plum production, the losses will oscillate between 40 and 50%, mainly due to the persistent rains during the flowering period, between mid-February and March, and the storms and hail a few weeks after the start of the campaign," he explains.
According to the Extremaduran producer and exporter, while last year's plum season was already marked by a drop in the production, this year's decline will be much greater. In addition to the fruit that did not set, there is a lot of fruit that was hit by hail and which will not meet the necessary quality standards to be sold as first class. "A lot of plums will be needed for export," he says.
Chile and South Africa finished their plum campaigns a few weeks ago and the availability of fruit from Spain is very limited. "At the moment, there is a considerable shortage. Supermarket shelves are quite empty, and we expect this great shortage of plums to last for at least two or three more weeks," says Jose Aurelio Garcia.
Explum is fully devoted to the cultivation of stone fruits, with 80% of the total corresponding to red, yellow and black plums, and the other 20% to nectarines and peaches, although they are currently launching the first apricot productions.
The Extremaduran cooperative ships its fruit to many markets all over the world. "We opted for overseas trade since the beginning. This is necessary, considering that plums are not highly consumed, like other fruits. Thus, it is very important to find the right market niches to be able to sell our entire production. Traditionally, our most important markets have been in the American continent, especially Brazil and Canada, and last year we were the only company to ship Spanish plums to Mexico. Every day, we continue gaining market share in destinations like Asia and the Middle East."
For more information:José Aurelio García
Explum SC
T: +34 924446338
M: +34 615289854
jagarcia@explumsc.com
www.explumsc.com