There are just over 3 months left for the start of the Region of Murcia's melon and watermelon campaign and farmers and Proexport companies are already cautiously working on planning their plantations. The summer of 2021 brought poor results for most producers at origin as fruit consumption plummeted due to the cold temperatures in Europe. According to Proexport, this year producers are thinking carefully about what risks to take and how many hectares to plant because of the sharp rise in production costs.
The president of Proexport's Melon and Watermelon Sector, Jose Canovas Ruiz (right photo), said that many customers were calling them asking about the future availability of the products, a question that is difficult to answer at this time. "Almeria has greatly reduced its hectares, it is true, but these are the weeks in which the producers from the Region of Murcia must order from the seedbeds most of the seedlings for melon and watermelon transplants in their farms."
“All producers work to ensure the availability of the product and to be able to supply customers on our production dates. However, farmers are suffering a lot, they are protesting in the streets and demanding guarantees. We must give them guarantees," stated Cánovas. “Spanish and European distributors, their purchasing centers, and intermediaries should be sensitive to the producers' reality, share costs with production at origin, and rigorously program their orders. Consumers want a good product, not the ruin of farmers and companies.”
Production costs have increased by a whopping 21.1%
The association of organizations of fruit and vegetable producers in the Region of Murcia, PROEXPORT-AOPFH, and the region's association of cooperatives, AMOPA, have carried out a rigorous cost study in which they got data from cooperatives, producers-exporters, and markets from Murcia, Almeria, and Alicante. The results show that melon and watermelon production costs have increased by an average of 21.1% over the 2021 campaign. Production costs have increased by nearly 30% for some companies.
Thus, it's not surprising that, on February 16, the Region's agricultural sector participated in one of the largest demonstrations that have taken place in Murcia. Thousands of farmers and irrigators from all over the Region didn't work the fields and closed their warehouses that day to protest with more than 500 tractors, trucks, and agricultural machinery. They were concerned about the sector's future and demanded respect and being paid fair prices for their production in the fields.
Spain is Europe's main melon and watermelon producer. The Region of Murcia is the country's leading melon producer, accounting for nearly 55% of the total national production, and the second-biggest producer of watermelons after Andalusia accounting for 20% of the country's total production.
For more information:
