The red and black table grape campaign started a week later for the earliest Murcian producers. The delay, which has coincided with an early end of the Egyptian campaign, has led to a shortage of grapes in the British market, as well as in other countries in Europe.
"We have started the grape harvest one week late this year, and although there has been a clear drop in the volume available at the beginning, this is now being compensated with the later varieties," says David Franco, of the sales department of Grupo Paloma. "This, together with the fact that Egypt, Murcia's main competitor, has shipped smaller volumes at the end of its campaign, has helped us sell our production smoothly, since there have been shortages in markets such as the United Kingdom," he explains. "At the moment, the harvest in Spain is at its peak."
Grupo Paloma produces 100% of the table grapes it markets. The company is also specialised in the cultivation of tomatoes, pomegranates and stone fruit. Most of the table grape production is located in the early area and focuses mainly on red and black seedless varieties. The United Kingdom accounts for 80% of the firm's total sales, carried out through closed programs with supermarket chains. They also ship smaller volumes to other European destinations, such as Germany, the Netherlands and Scandinavia.
Although destinations outside the European Union such as the Middle East, South Africa, Canada or Asia are becoming popular for Spanish grape exporters, David Franco points out that "for now, we have no plans to ship anything outside of Europe, as our current markets absorb the entire production."
"We are happy with the quality of this year's grape harvest. The campaign has been ongoing now for more than 3 weeks and there's still a lot to do until we finish in October. For now, however, everything is going well," says David Franco.
"Pomegranate consumption has a great future"
As in the case of table grapes, Grupo Paloma's pomegranate production is entirely its own. Although last year's harvest started 10 days earlier, this year it will kick off 4 or 5 days late. There are fewer fruits per tree, so large sizes are also expected.
In recent years, the Murcian company has made important investments in varietal reconversion and in increasing the production, focusing on red varieties such as the Wonderful, which are intended for export markets. "We work with a number of seed houses that are developing varieties that seek to maintain the colour, but improving the taste and sweetness. So far, the results have been very positive," says David Franco.
"Although it is true that the acreage devoted to pomegranates in the world has increased a lot, I believe that the fruit's consumption has great potential for the future. The demand is growing every year, partly due to its good press and its use in health and cooking programs, mostly thanks to its nutritional properties and versatility in the kitchen. Furthermore, the market share of fresh cut pomegranate is growing by about 25% per year in the United Kingdom, which shows that this market segment also has a good future."