Mercabarna past posted a record pre-tax profit of €10.4m in 2018, a 49.39 per cent increase on the previous year.
The rise was mainly due to the sale of a self-service warehouse previously operated by Makro for €4.7m to a meat company operating within the market.
The market’s president, Agustí Colom, said the profits would be invested in environmental projects, the fight against food waste, the infrastructure modernisation and themed visitor days to bring the area’s inhabitants in closer contact with the market.
Work on the new €5m Biomarket, a building dedicated exclusively to organics, began in December and is due to be completed in the first quarter of 2020.
Part of the income will be used for the implementation of a strategic plan against food waste, which includes a new waste management system that will reduce food waste and further enhance recycling.
In total, Mercabarna plans to invest €17m during the course of 2019.
The companies within the market sold a total of 2.26m tonnes of food in 2018, 4 per cent more than in the previous year.
The rise was mainly due to improved sales within the fruit and vegetable market and the Complementary Activities Zone, which houses more than 400 companies dedicated to providing added value services such as ripening and fresh-cut. Fruit and vegetables sales at the market increased by 2.27 per cent to 1.18m tonnes last year.
