Pomegranate harvest is about to end in the most important cultivation zone of Greece for this product, Thessaly. Mr. Thanasis Nastos, vice president of the local Pomegranate Agricultural Cooperative Afroditi, which cultivates 75 hectares of this fruit in the area of Larissa, says: "The season began with the Acco variety, which was 30–40% lower than last year's in quantity, but presented good quality and was sold at satisfactory prices. Growers received €0,70 to €0,80 per kilogram for fruits that generally exceeded 250 grams. There are no stocks of Acco left."
© Afroditi
The season continues with the Wonderful variety, but quality problems have arisen in recent days due to persistent rainfall. "We are finishing the harvest season in a few days with the Wonderful variety. Grower prices are the same as for Acco. So far, we have recorded about 60% lower production compared to last season. This is due to the unfavorable weather conditions during the flowering phase. We are also receiving smaller fruits than expected, given the production decrease. The average fruit size is 300–400 grams. Anyway, new problems are now emerging. The recent rainfall has been causing quite widespread cracking of fruits. It is not worth picking the fruits before they crack, since they are not yet ripe enough," says Mr. Nastos.
There are more losses to come. As he says: "At the moment, and for a few more days, Wonderful pomegranates are leaving cold storage in good condition, but it is almost certain that from November onward, quality problems will start to appear. We expect to see a portion of our stored pomegranates discarded due to decay problems caused by the rain. Technically, there are phytosanitary products that could be applied to prevent these losses, but when you work with large retailers, both domestically and abroad, these products are out of the question. They are not accepted, and otherwise you would end up selling nothing."
© Afroditi
The vice president of the Greek cooperative is anxious about stock availability: "We export our produce to Germany and Serbia. Demand is steady, and we expect it to increase later, but so far, prices, though stable, have not compensated us for the amount of production losses. Our main concern is whether we will have enough products for Christmas, because this is when demand rises significantly. Cracking and storage losses will further reduce the already low availability of fruit."
For more information:
Thanasis Nastos
Afroditi
Tel: +30 697 587 5902, +30 694 920 8996
Email: [email protected]
