"The quality of greenhouse vegetables from Almería and its surrounding regions is good. There has been no rain over the last two months and there is enough wind, says the Spanish company, Frutas Luna's, Kees Havenaar.
"This all benefits the products' quality. However, ask me how the price is and how trade is currently going, and I would, unfortunately, have to say so-so."
"At the trade fair earlier this month, it was already being said 'the first products have already arrived'. For Spanish exporters like us, who have Dutch roots, this is never nice to hear. It happens earlier every year. It is also then a hint: pay attention, things are going to go south," says Kees.
"After all, domestic trade is still a priority for the Dutch companies. We all know that the volume of this domestic product is limited. Despite this, it still influences the market."
Aubergine and courgette prices are disappointing at the moment. "They are of excellent quality. We are having warmer nights and very nice spring days with pleasant temperatures, " Kees continues.
"The green bell peppers are having a difficult season. I expected February to be better for this product. Currently, most farmers have planted watermelon. The rest of the peppers are colored too. Despite this, green peppers have not managed to recover."
"The red bell peppers are all over the place. The late variety growers are speculating a bit. If prices drop to EUR1.20, they quit, and prices drop further down to EUR1.10 euro. There are also no major outliers when it comes to yellow bell peppers," says Kees.
"White pointed peppers are selling well. We still have this product for three weeks, and then we are done. I expect we will still have Palermo until the end of April. This product is not selling as well as in other years. There many of these peppers from our neighbors to the south on the market. There are also many 'fakes'."
"The cucumbers have done well except for the three weeks in December. However, we cannot complain about the last six weeks. Now, we are competing with the Dutch product," Kees goes on to say. "The tomatoes and, especially, the truss tomatoes have also sold well with good prices."
Kees says it is difficult to predict what will happen in the next two months. "At the moment, the weather is 20 degrees Celcius in both Spain and the Netherlands. This is nice for those wanting to sit outside on the terrace, but it is not good for business."
"If this kind of weather continues in the Netherlands for two or three weeks, and there are days with a lot of sunshine, we can retire early this season. This sound harsh, but it is true. Besides the programs we have in place, things will get extremely difficult."
"However, on the whole, we cannot complain. Frutas Luna made it through the winter well. This is thanks to our permanent business relations as well as newcomers. We can look back positively on the last five months. We are also even more positive about things to come," Kees concludes.
For more information:
Frutas Luna import/export S.L.
9 Calle Américo Vespucio
04740 Roquetas de Mar, Almería, Spain
Tel: +34 (0) 950 178 653
Mob: +34 (0) 670 916 286
kees@frutasluna.com
www.frutasluna.com