"Spain: "Pomegranate prices not on par with quality"

With the growing popularity of pomegranates, many exporters are having trouble meeting demand, such as Diego Molina, of Francisco Oliva S.L.

"The current stage of the campaign is very delicate; we have fewer pomegranates than we initially thought and we cannot pull out of the deals we made with our clients," he says.

Regarding prices, "we could say that they are not on par with the quality of the product, as we believe quality this year is extraordinary and prices in the market have been a little slow to adjust," explains D. Molina.

Pomegranates are growing in popularity, on the one hand, because of promotions advertising the health benefits of their consumption, but above all, according to Molina, "it is essential to mention the great work that the Pomegranate Producers and Traders Association of Elche is doing, as well as Elche's local council, in preparation for getting the Designation of Origin," he affirms.

"Unfortunately, there are many countries competing against us, like Israel, Turkey, etc.," says Molina, who affirms that these countries cannot compete in terms of quality and properties, but only in quantity and price.

"Competition from Israel affects us, because many people in Europe compare their pomegranates with ours, especially in price and colour; however, they do not look at the flavour and other properties of each, because quite frankly, they have nothing to do with one another."

Francisco Oliva S.L. supplies the Valencian and Mollar de Elche pomegranate varieties. "We focus on the Mollar de Elche, as it is our specialty."

The campaign lasts for approximately 4 to 5 months; "we start with the Valencian variety in mid/late August and try to stretch the campaign until mid-January," says the exporter.

Under the brand OLIVA, 40% of pomegranates are exported overseas, largely to the Middle East and other countries like Kenya and Malaysia. Another 40% goes to other EU countries, like France, Italy and Sweden, and the rest is distributed nationally.

For more information:
Diego Molina
Francisco Oliva S.L
T: +34965453276
M: +34690227711
info@francisco-oliva.es
www.francisco-oliva.es