The first new-season forecast for the European stonefruit campaign has forecast that growing production across the four major Mediterranean supply countries of Italy, France, Greece and Spain.
According to figures released by Europech', held during the Medfel trade fair in Perpignan, France, total apricot production is estimated to come in at 594,000 tonnes marking growth of 21 per cent on 2011, Green Med Journal reported.
Peaches are forecast to come in 1 per cent higher this year at 1.48m tonnes, which also represents growth of 5 per cent on the five-year average between 2006-2011.
Spanish peach volumes could hit 410,000 tonnes, up 2 per cent year-on-year, driven by higher flat peach numbers. French peaches are set to fall 1 per cent, while Italian volumes should remain stable at 703,000 tonnes.
For nectarines, European volumes are forecast to fall 1 per cent to a fraction over 1.5m tonnes, with Greece the only major producer expecting any growth on volumes seen in 2011, anticipating a crop that is up 7 per cent.
The nectarine yield is set to dip slightly in both Spain and Italy, down 1 per cent for both countries, while France is expecting a yearly drop of 5 per cent.
