Avocados are in fashion. In some European countries, such as France, which is the main destination for Malaga's production, consumption is even higher than that of Spain, despite the latter being the only producer in the European Union. The fruit's production takes place mainly in the provinces of Malaga and on the coast of Granada, although there are also farms in Cadiz, Murcia and Valencia. However, Malaga's production volume has remained stable at around 40,000 to 50,000 tonnes a year (some 70,000 in Andalusia as a whole), and there is no prospect of a significant increase in the coming years, partly due to the lack of water. And this despite the fact that many producers are adopting intensive farming and new management techniques, all with the aim of improving their productivity and consequently their profitability. In Malaga's case, the consumption and demand in European destinations has increased to a level well ahead of the available supply; so much so, that only 10% of the avocados consumed in the EU come from Malaga. In 2016, Europe imported 400,000 tonnes of this versatile fruit that can be used as a vegetable in salads, for sauces, as fruit or as part of a dessert, which makes it unique. Meanwhile, the production of other countries like Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Chile, South Africa and Israel continues to grow.
To be able to meet the demand of their European customers, Malaga's companies have been importing fruit for years as soon as the province's harvest comes to an end. So much so, that most of the province's exporters already sell more imported fruit than local. Montosa alone sold about 25,000 tonnes of avocados in 2016, which is about half of the province's expected production. The total volume of avocados sold last year by the main companies in the sector (Montosa, Reyes Gutiérrez, Natural Tropic, Trópico Spain and Tropical Millenium, as well as Trops, which is the company selling the most domestic product), exceeded 75,000 tonnes. There are currently about 30 companies operating in this sector in the province.
Although the demand is helping companies increase their figures year by year by between 20 and 50 percent, some executives of these companies have warned of the risk of Malaga's tropical crops losing market share.
"The product's consumption is on the rise, but our production is the same and that makes other producers sell more than us. Our advantage is that we offer a product with maximum freshness, as it takes no more than four days after the harvest to reach any destination. The American avocado, on the other hand, spends a minimum of three weeks in a container at sea. During the campaign, the consumer prefers Spanish avocados and that is why we would like to boost our production," explains Francisco Ramírez, of Trópico Spain.
According to Trops manager Enrique Colilles, the avocado market is growing by 30% every year in Europe, while Malaga's production "is stagnant. In our case, given that we have more and more partners, we are increasing the volume. As a sector, we are at risk of losing ground in the market, because there are other less speculative producer countries, and customers are looking for strong suppliers able to provide large volumes," he affirms.
The manager of Tropical Millenium, Miguel Páez, explains that, in the EU, Peruvian and Chilean producers have been the ones fighting to promote the fruit's consumption. "As a result, the Peruvians are exporting more than 180,000 tonnes to Europe, and Chileans more than 80,000 tonnes," he points out. For Páez, as for the rest of Malaga's exporters, despite the quality and freshness of the avocado from Malaga, if the production does not grow, there is a real risk that it will lose market share. The situation with mangoes is different. The prospects of having more production are a reality and Malaga's position as a producer is stronger.
Fruit Logística has been a meeting place with producers from all over the world, something that Malaga's companies have taken advantage of. All have maintained contacts to plan their fruit import campaign, taking into account that the province's Hass avocado harvest will come to an end in April and they must be sure to have product available for their customers.
Source: diariosur.es
