Spanish fresh produce association Fepex has revealed that the country's fruit and vegetable imports increased in July on a year-on-year basis, driven by strong domestic fresh produce consumption.
Citing figures from the Spanish Department of Customs and Excise Tax Agency, Fepex said that imports climbed 18 per cent in volume terms on the same month of 2012, up to 154,467 tonnes, and 22.5 per cent in value to €125.6m.
By segment, fresh fruit imports grew 29 per cent in volume and 28.3 per cent in value, up to 116,964 tonnes and €103m respectively.
Fruit imports were led by apples, with 35 per cent more taken in by the country (17,968 tonnes) and kiwifruit, with imports up 57 per cent to 14,616 tonnes.
Fepex also released import figures for the January-July period, stating that overall fresh produce volumes had grown 4 per cent in volume to 1.3m tonnes and 27 per cent in value, coming in at €995m.
'For Fepex, the strong import growth in July was due to the strength of domestic consumption, which increased by 3 per cent in the same month,' the group noted.
