The rains and lack of sunlight persist throughout the Spanish Levante, casting some doubts as to their possible impact on the supply of upcoming crops, such as watermelon, in the Region of Murcia.
To make matters worse, in Lorca, a heavy hail storm was recorded on May 13 which took a toll on more than 600 hectares of watermelon, melon, artichoke, broccoli or lettuce, among other crops.
"The hail fully destroyed about 50 hectares of watermelon crops located around our facilities, while another 40 hectares have been partially affected and we still don't know how the plants will develop," says Jesus Abenza, managing director of the cooperative Alimer. "Thus, we have already lost between 10 and 12% of the expected watermelon production for this season."
While hail has been a cause for concern for all affected producers, for days the reality has changed again due to the persistent rains recorded in the Region, as well as in the north of Almeria.
"The excessive rainfall and lack of sunshine are very inauspicious for the watermelon production, and we are concerned about how the supply will have been affected when harvesting begins. Initially, even though the acreage has been slightly reduced compared to last year, we expected much better yields, since last season we suffered a significant drop. "There will therefore be a greater watermelon supply than last year, but lower than we expected."
For more information:
Jesús Abenza
Alimer S.Coop.
Camino de Villaespesa, s/n. Lorca. Spain
T: +34 968 460 812
j.abenza@alimer.es
www.alimer.es