More than a thousand packs of strawberries from Huelva were handed out in Brussels recently as part of the #yocomofresasdehuelva campaign launched by UPA-Huelva and UPA-Andalucía. This initiative has brought the promotional efforts for strawberries to the heart of Europe.
"The campaign kicked off a month ago, and we have been traveling around various locations with our slogan 'I eat strawberries from Huelva' because they are healthy, safe, and sustainable," said Manuel Piedras. "We started by handing out strawberries in Seville. We have also been in Madrid, and today we are at the Economic and Social Committee, where the campaign has received support from all countries and in all languages, and in front of the European Parliament here in Brussels, hoping to replicate the success we had in previous events."
With this initiative, UPA Huelva aims to promote the consumption of strawberries in the heart of Europe, as the campaign is currently in full swing. After an initial delay in the harvest, high temperatures in the first half of March led to a growth in the volumes available, which caused a significant drop in the price at the origin of strawberries in week 11. However, the cold wave during Easter, which brought some much-awaited rainfall, slowed down the supply and allowed prices to recover.
"Easter has been historic in terms of water resource accumulation in the province of Huelva. All this rain will be very valuable to us, as it ensures we can finish the strawberry campaign without difficulty, and we won't have problems starting the next campaign, which will begin in October with the planting of the bushes."
"It's important to remember that we are still subject to a 50% restriction on the use of water for irrigation, but in the current scenario, UPA Huelva will support a return to only a 25% restriction at the next Drought Committee in Huelva, to be held on April 10."
"This rain and the winter temperatures have also led to the production falling to about half of what we would normally have. The Tuesday after Easter, the markets are usually flooded with fruit due to stores having been closed, causing the price to drop significantly, but this hasn't been a good year for those speculating with strawberries around Easter because the opposite has happened."
"For example, today we saw in a large supermarket in Brussels that half a kilo of strawberries from Huelva were being sold for 4.95 euros. This is a good price, although quite below what our growers charge at origin," says Manuel. "It also shows that there's a good demand for Spanish strawberries."
"It's worth noting that the situation with the alerts from Morocco affected us significantly, and large chains were lowering prices and running promotions at that time. In fact, consumption in supermarkets and large chains did not fall, although it did in the traditional markets that handle the product in bulk."
"Luckily, the situation has been resolved. However, our work to communicate that strawberries from Huelva are healthy, safe and sustainable continues, and after Brussels, we will continue with our 'I eat strawberries from Huelva' campaign in other cities in order to promote their consumption."
"On April 10, we will be in Valladolid. We will also go to Santiago de Compostela to offer pilgrims arriving at the Plaza del Obradoiro strawberries from Huelva as a refreshing treat, and we are also planning to go in Valencia to the City of Arts and Sciences."
For more information:
UPA-Huelva
Tel.: +34 959 378 494
upahuelva@upahuelva.org
http://upahuelva.es