Fruit and vegetable producers in Almeria could save €57.2m a year by using corrugated cardboard packaging instead of reusable plastic crates (RPCs). These are the findings of study by Almerian producer association Coexphal, which claims that using RPCs results in an extra cost of €0.20-€1.20 per carton, or €0.02-€0.30 per kg of produce for the producer.
The results of the study were presented at an event held last week in Almería entitled ‘The role of packaging in the profitability and sustainability of Spain’s fruit and vegetable sector’, which concluded that single-use packaging was not only more cost efficient, but also minimised the risk of contamination, extended product shelf life and had the lowest environmental impact.
“Coexphal believes that the sector is losing millions of euros because of the inefficient imposition of packaging decisions by the retailers which do not prioritise economic and environmental factors,” said Luis Miguel Fernández, Coexphal’s manager.
“Our members represent the biggest producers in terms of export volume and we should continue working together to ensure that they are free to choose the packaging options that are right for them.”
The study was carried out by agri-food economist Ramón Tubío, who compared the production and commercialisation costs of the most representative products in the region (peppers, cucumbers, different varieties of tomato, courgettes, aubergines and melons) to determine the economic impact of different packaging options. He concluded that: “ for the producer, corrugated cardboard packaging is more profitable than RPCs”.
Analysing different metrics, the research found that cardboard could be as much as 91.17 per cent cheaper for the producer, resulting in an increase in turnover of up to 27.58 per cent.
Tubío said that choosing an unsuitable packaging option not only impacted costs, but also the level of protection products received during transportation and distribution. Furthermore, he noted that the use of cardboard allowed companies to differentiate their product and promote their brands to the consumer, which “has a direct impact on their profitability, resulting in a significant loss not only to the growers and marketers but also to the retailer”.
He urged the sector to present a common front in order to prevent these distortions from occurring.
Tubío’s findings substantiate those from a previous study analysing the most commonly marketed fruits and vegetables produced in Murcia.
“This problem can be extrapolated to the entire sector and it’s very likely that we’d see the same results if similar studies were conducted in other regions and other types of crop,” Tubíos concluded.
