Given the prices of greenhouse watermelons in Almeria, Spain, open ground watermelon growers already feared that this was again not going to be a good campaign, says Pascual Soler, vice-president of Asaja-Almeria (as well as farmer and entrepreneur in the Palomares area). And with this one, growers have already suffered three straight seasons with prices not covering the production costs. The fruit cultivated in the fields of East Almeria has an advantage over that produced in greenhouses, and that is lower production costs, explains Soler; however, "its value has dropped under the threshold of sustainability for the business."
At the beginning of the harvest season this year prices were acceptable, around 0.32 Euro, says the vice-president of Asaja-Almeria. Nevertheless, "after the first week, the price dropped under 0.20 Euro, and during most of the season watermelons were sold for between 0.10 to 0.12 Euro, with farmers receiving compensations as low as 0.04 Euro per kilo." It is the third straight season with this situation, explains Pascual Soler, "which is due to strong competition between firms that traditionally produced and sold tomatoes, but which have switched to watermelons due to tomatoes' low profitability." The prices paid for the product are in no direct correlation with the quality they offer, because "the fruit produced this campaign was of excellent quality," assures the vice-president of Asaja-Almeria.
Source: Ideal