Almeria is, without a doubt, the leading Andalusian province in terms of agro-food sales. According to Extenda Andalucía its exports up to May were worth 2,102 million euros, and this year it will have a new auction in El Ejido that will contribute to facilitating the reception, handling and marketing of fruits and vegetables, of which the province sells more than 3 million tons every year.
"The Agrupa2 Hortofrutícola auction is already up and running and held its first session on August 1," says David Figueredo, who is in charge of the new auction. "At the end of January, several producers contacted me because of the uncertainty that had arisen in several companies about the possibility of selling, and we decided to undertake this project."
"In March, we found the 8,000 m² warehouse where we are currently located, and in these four months, we have worked on adapting the docks and acquiring the necessary machinery and lines for the handling and packaging of the produce we receive from our partners," says David.
"We have managed to do everything relatively quickly, but it has been a difficult process. Still, since we announced the creation of the new auction, many people have backed the initiative and we now have 107 members. Approximately 35-40% of them are producers, another 35-40% are buyers and the rest are workers and families who wanted to participate in Agrupa2 Hortofrutícola."
Sessions are already being held at the Agrupa2 auction facilities, where around 25,000 kilos a day are being handled during this summer period. "We have a very good feeling about it. We are only slowly making progress, but with the strength and confidence provided by having plenty of people working with a common goal," says David. "What we want is to have a transparent and close relationship with our members, and to keep both them and non-member growers contributing to the vegetable programs we are going to develop, giving them a greater role in the commercial side with the possibility of packing the produce directly in the field."
"In this way, we will prevent losses in the handling, while growers will also manage to get a higher price for their produce and have a better understanding of all the processes involved in selling to supermarkets. Also, we will speed up the processes in loading and in the warehouse."
"According to the figures we have, this year we expect to handle around 25-30 million kilos of vegetables at the auction. Given the current prices, it shouldn't be too difficult to reach this figure, and thanks to the volume we expect and the fact that we are going to keep the costs under control, we have been backed not just by the banks, but also by various national supermarket chains willing to sell our products."
"In just over six months, we have been able to get this project off the ground, and it continues to grow every day, as more and more producers are putting their trust in it," says David proudly. "We already have everything ready for the start of the 2024/25 season in October."
For more information:
Agrupa2 Hortofrutícola
Paraje la Cumbre, 128
04715 El Ejido, Almería, Spain
Tel.: +34 950 50 24 50
[email protected]
https://hortoagrupa2.com