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Virginia Artero, commercial director of Nationwide Produce Spain:

"Orders for vegetables in Almeria have started coming in very quickly this season, it has taken us by surprise"

The greenhouse vegetable season in Almeria has started with high prices, boosted by high demand. The planting of some products has been delayed to prevent the impact of pests and the supply is still limited.

"Orders in Almeria have started coming in very quickly this season. We should be filling pallets and not whole trucks. It has been totally unexpected and caught us all by surprise," says Virginia Artero, Sales Director of Nationwide Produce España.

Although prices are falling as the production gradually increases, those of products such as eggplant and zucchini have started out really high. "Zucchini is still very expensive for the time of year, with prices that you'd typically expect during Christmas, although there is still some local production in the United Kingdom and other Central European countries."

Generally, growers have been more cautious when it comes to planting, which they have done later this year in order to avoid the proliferation of pests in the hottest period, during the summer. "Those who have continued to plant zucchini and eggplant on the usual dates have benefited from the higher prices paid for these products," says Virginia.

"Prices are falling as the volumes increase, although at the moment, given that the supply is still limited, they may rise again as soon as a large supermarket chain comes in to buy. Some chains are still working with other suppliers, such as the Netherlands, in combination with our first batches, because we don't have enough volumes yet to fully meet the European retail demand," she says.

Tomatoes are still Spain's second most exported product in terms of volume, after peppers. "Morocco has taken Spain's place as the largest supplier. In fact, varieties of round, plum, loose or cherry tomatoes have almost disappeared from Almeria's greenhouses with the rise of Moroccan tomatoes, and instead there has been a greater focus on vine tomatoes, vine plum cherry, yellow cherry and, above all, specialities," says the Sales Director of Nationwide Produce España.

"The seasons are cyclical and we always tend to go full circle. We have had two bad years, followed by two very good years in which Morocco has had problems with its crops and Dutch tomatoes have been hit by high energy costs. Now energy costs are down for Dutch greenhouses and Morocco will be able to increase its volumes again, as it will have plenty of desalinated water at the start. We will have to be cautious, because the tomato market is strongly influenced by what our competitors do," says Virginia Artero.

"It is also worth recalling that, just as many European chains have fully turned to Morocco as a supplier in recent years because of its lower prices, its supply shortages last year have caused some to reconsider. I think there needs to be a balance in sourcing; service shouldn't be sacrificed just to get the cheapest product," she says.

"I am expecting a good vegetable season. We thought that this summer's heat would damage the crops, but this hasn't been the case in the end. We hope that the stable production will also meet a stable demand and prices in the European retail," says Virginia Artero.

For more information:
Virginia Artero
Nationwide Produce PLC
Tel.: +34 950 483 026
[email protected]
www.nationwideproduce.com

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