Fruit and vegetable imports to the European Union dropped by 12 per cent during the first nine months of 2009 compared with the same period a year before, with the decreases particularly pronounced in bananas, apples, potatoes and onions.

According to figures obtained by Spanish fresh produce federation Fepex, fruit and vegetable imports between January and September 2009 totalled 10m tonnes, or by €7.9m, equivalent to an 11 per cent drop in volume and a 12 per cent fall in value.

Total fruit imports fell by 13 per cent to 8.1m tonnes, with the decrease especially evident in the main products shipped to Europe, bananas and apples, which both registered a 14 per cent drop compared with the same period a year before.

Imports of oranges and grapes also suffered decreases in volume of 25 per cent and 6 per cent respectively, according to the figures.

In vegetables, total imports fell by 2 per cent in volume to 1.9m tonnes and by 1 per cent in value to €1.49m, with potatoes, which decreased by 13 per cent, and onions, down by 29 per cent, among the most affected products.

However, although overall volumes fell, imports of tomatoes from Morocco, which are of great concern to Spanish producers, increased by 34 per cent in volume to 242,745 tonnes, contributing to a total 22 per cent increase in imports of the product.

Pepper imports, the majority of which are sourced from Morocco and Israel, also rose by 12 per cent to 173,036 compared with the same nine months of 2008.

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