With two weeks delay due to excessive rain, the season for watermelons and Sandia melons in Almeria set off with decent price levels. The yield per square meter is lower, although temperature and many hours of sunshine have now accelerated the ripening process.
Sandia watermelon
"Growers normally supply 7 to 8 pounds of Sandia per square meter, but this year it’s no more than 5 pounds, depending on the size," says Rodríguez Loli of the commercial department of the Unica Group. In Latin America the watermelon season is over. With the delays in the Spanish season, there is a gap in the market. That drives up the price, which is relatively good, the seedless watermelon cost around €0.70 per kilo. "We mainly compete with Moroccan, Italian, Senegalese, Turkish and Greek watermelons," adds Rodriguez.
Unica Group sells all kinds of watermelons, mostly seedless, striped and black minis. "We notice that the demand for the cheaper watermelon is growing in Europe. We chalk that up to the effects of the economic crisis, as consumers are increasingly guided by the price," she explains.
Unica Group represents six cooperatives in the province of Almeria and Granada, including Ferva, Casur, Cohorsan, Cabasc and the AgriEco Group. German food chains are its main customers, with 70% of all exports under the brand FRESHQUITA going to Germany. The season runs until July, thanks in part to additional plots in Granada.
More information:
Unica Group
+34 950 181 500
Loli Rodríguez
Virginia Artero
