The heavy rains that affected much of southern Spain during the early part of 2010 have, as expected, led to a significant decrease in strawberry and raspberry exports this season, but blueberry sales have provided growers with much needed relief.
Between January and June this year, Spanish strawberry exports decreased by 6 per cent in volumes terms to €208,6617 tonnes and 3 per cent by value to €364m, compared with the same period of 2009.
Similarly, raspberry exports, which again were produced primarily in the Andalusian province of Huelva, dropped by 24 per cent to 8,118 tonnes and by 11.5 per cent in value terms to €62m during the first six months of the year.
But, by contrast, blueberry exports recorded a marked increase, with volume sales between January and June up by 8 per cent to 8,656 tonnes, while the value of this business also rose by 8 per cent to €42.2m, according to Spanish customs data, processed by export federation Fepex.
In a statement, Alberto Garrocho, president of regional soft fruit association Freshuelva, admitted that growers had endured a “difficult campaign” as a result of the adverse weather conditions.
“The stormy weather during the winter caused great losses in the production of early varieties of soft fruit, as well as material damage to farms,” he said.
