Spain: Early cherry production drops 30% due to rain

If the lack of rain during Winter caused some alarm in the fields as there was the chance of having to restrict irrigation, the abundance of rain in the few last weeks was not that beneficial for some fruits, like burlat cherry, the earliest in the area. According to the president of ASAJA-Bierzo, Roberto Canedo, producers of this variety lost between 20% and 30% of the harvest, since the maturity of it was advanced when the rain came and the fruit started to crack.

An important loss that becomes serious if we account for the fact that the burlat variety is not the majority in Bierzo, but it brings better income to producers.

Producers sell early cherry by 1 Euro on average.

By being the first harvested in the year, it comes with an added value. There's enough product and demand, so it's a good sale", explained Canedo, estimating that a kilo of it might reach 1 Euro, while the French cherry - the one with longest selling period - it's sold by 0,50 Euro. Burlat goes directly to the markets, while the French one is sold, almost completely, to factories.

Despite no organization to support the cherry production, like other fruits (pears or grapes), the area counts on a important number of producers united around Bierzo Central. Farmers from Cacabelos, Corullón, Villafranca, Rimor or Magaz already felt the consequences of last month's weather on their harvests.

Source: Diario de León