"One of the biggest cherimoya producers in Spain"

Mercomotril is one of the largest suppliers of cherimoya in Spain. "Cherimoya is only produced in Granada because of the favourable climate," says director Adrian Martinez Picazo. "We supply one of the largest Spanish retailers and about 10% of the cherimoya is exported. The nutritional value of this product is very good, but the problem with cherimoya lies in its shelf life."

The impact of the water damage in Motril is limited. "It has not been as intense in our area as it was in Murcia. A maximum 0.5% of the production has been destroyed," says Adrian Martinez Picazo. He expects a difficult season for vegetables. "Because of the economic crisis in Spain, people working on building sites are returning to jobs in horticulture. Production is too high for a reasonable price, as is the case in the Netherlands."

"We are very active in order to introduce varieties with a better flavour and shelf life. We have a lot of competition from Morocco where tomatoes and green beans are concerned. Competition for cucumbers comes mainly from Turkey and Greece, but that affects us less. We have one great advantage and that is that we can provide pallets of our products to all countries in Europe within 48 hours," says the director.

Mercomotril supplies mangoes year round. "The Spanish season started in early September and will last until December. Then we will switch over to South American produce, so we can supply all year round. We work mainly with the Osteen variety which we feel is the best mango in the world. It's very sweet and isn't stringy. The mango acreage in Malaga and Granada increases sharply, around 20 to 30% anually!"

For more information:
Mercomotril
Poligono Alboran Parc 54
18600 Motril
Granada
Tel: 0034 958 60 16 00
mercomotril@mercomotril.com
www.mercomotril.com