Spanish citrus and vegetable producers are analysing the impact of a fresh wave of freezing cold weather and frosts, which is said to have damaged as much as 30 per cent of the crops being cultivated in some areas.
Temperatures below zero degrees have been recorded in the south-eastern coastal regions of Valencia and Murcia since last Thursday and concern is growing among the sector that the cold weather could continue for several more days to come.
In Valencia region, early morning frosts are reported to have caused “serious damage” to both citrus crops, with estimates from local agricultural associations Ava-Asaja and La Unió putting the volume losses at between 20 and 30 per cent.
The associations said the frosts had also severely damaged covered vegetable crops that were already in the midst of production, notably artichokes, but also lettuce, cauliflower, spinach, broad beans and chard.
Production in nearby Murcia also suffered the effects of the freezing temperatures, with regional association Asaja Murcia reporting that between 5 and 10 per cent of the artichoke crop in Cartagena province had been damaged.
The organisation said the wave of cold weather had also affected, albeit to a lesser extent, lettuce and celery production in Cartagena and Guadalentin Valley.
Cristóbal Aguado, president of Valencia’s Ava-Asaja said the frosts had arrived at a particularly bad time for growers in eastern Spain, as they were only beginning to recover from the effects of a similar bout of cold temperatures last December.
