Sánchez Haro has stressed the importance of having accurate crop estimations for one of Andalusia's main productions; a system that is already used with other crops (olives, cotton and citrus fruits, among others), but which has so far not been implemented in horticulture. The goal, most likely for next season, is to have "a predictive model for the simulation of future scenarios for the estimation of horticultural greenhouse productions in the south east of Andalusia." It will be an innovative tool using Big Data techniques (management and analysis of large volumes of data).
The Councillor of Agriculture believes that "campaign forecasts help make important decisions," so this new predictive system will help producers and marketers to "improve their results and competitiveness." He has consequently asked for the sector's collaboration so that a model currently under development can be refined, underlining the importance of "working together to remain at the forefront in terms of production, processing, marketing and exporting." He insisted on the fact that "we are leaders in quality and sustainability in the European market," and stressed that "Almeria accounts for 60% of Andalusia's horticultural production, with almost 3.7 million tonnes of fruit and vegetables and more than 3,150 million Euro in revenue.
In order to maintain this leadership, the Councillor has also highlighted the need not to lower the guard when it comes to the biological control of crops, as the acreage protected by it has been reduced by 5.1%, down to 24,400 hectares. "The reduction of biological control in spring crops is one of the reasons why there are more cases of viral diseases at the beginning of the campaign," he warned. Despite this, and just like on previous occasions, he is confident that "there can be a recovery of the production in the areas affected."
As for the 2017/18 campaign already underway in Almeria, the director has highlighted that the acreage at the start is similar to that of the previous season (2016/2017), with 36,570 hectares (0.25% less). As regards the main crops, peppers (4%), cucumbers (5%) and aubergines (2%) have gained ground, while tomatoes (-4%), courgettes (-1%) and especially green beans (-30%) have recorded drops. As for prices, the campaign has started with rises for courgettes (10%), tomatoes (3%) and peppers (1%), while for now the only drop has been recorded by cucumbers (-15%).
Source: Europa Press
