Spanish fruit and vegetable exports have risen by 18 per cent in volume and 7 per cent in value in the first three months of 2011, a development which the sector has attributed to strong sales growth in key markets such as Germany, France and the UK.
Between January and March, exports totalled 3.1m tonnes, which were worth an estimated €2,813m, thanks to a 22 per cent increase in fruit exports to 1.6m tonnes and a 15 per cent rise in vegetable sales to 1.5m tonnes compared with the same period a year before.
According to Spanish fresh produce federation Fepex, fruit sales during the trimester were worth €1,336m, with citrus export volumes in particular rising by 55 per cent, despite the average prices received dropping by 7 per cent year-on-year.
Despite a general increase in vegetable export sales – principally tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber and peppers – average prices received by exporters also fell by 12 per cent compared with the first three months of 2010.
However, Fepex said the positive overall results for fruit and vegetable exports during the trimester was mainly due to the progress made by the “most dynamic” economies in the European Union, particularly France and Germany, where sales rose by 19 per cent and 18 per cent respectively.
Fepex director José María Pozancos added that the strength of consumption in these northern European markets “had compensated for the sluggishness of the domestic (Spanish) market”.
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