In Spain, the melon and watermelon harvest has already started in the Region of Murcia, which currently accounts for most of the country's production.
The watermelon acreage has been slightly reduced in this growing area, which has also suffered the impact of a big hail storm and abundant rainfall before the harvest. Murcia's melon acreage has remained more stable, although the impact of hail and rain have been remarkable, as the harvest will be reduced by at least 15 to 20%. Some marketers in the sector point out that there is even less product available due to the influence of the rains in the medium term, which has also affected the sugar levels of the fruit.
"In July, the product's supply is going to be more limited, since in addition to a lower volume, there is great demand on the part of retailers and wholesale markets throughout Europe, driven by high and stable temperatures,” says a Spanish producer and exporter.
"As regards watermelons, the demand depends more on the weather. Although there was only a limited supply of good quality watermelons in Almería in the previous weeks, this problem has been solved with the start of Murcia's harvest. In our case, however, the hail storm two weeks ago completely destroyed this year's organic watermelon harvest.”
Prices already stand at good levels at the moment, but they are expected to further increase due to the limited production and good weather in Europe.