Spain’s fresh produce sector ended 2009 with a fall in both export volumes and value compared with the previous 12 months, a result that industry federation Fepex blamed on strong pressure on prices and increasing competition both inside and outside the EU.
In a statement, the Madrid-based organisation said that Spain’s overall export volume for fruit and vegetables dropped by 3 per cent to 9.1m tonnes during 2009, while value fell by 4 per cent to an estimated €7.6m compared with €8m in 2008.
According to Fepex, the negative results reflect a fall in competitiveness that the Spanish sector has suffered over recent years in comparison with both fellow European Union producers and non-EU exporters.
In the case of other EU-member countries, the group claimed that several nations were increasing their production levels thanks to both measures that had been put in place to maximise energy efficiency in greenhouses and regional aid programmes that it argued were “distorting competition” within the EU.
Outside the EU, Fepex claimed that Spanish exporters faced strong competition from countries where salary costs were often far lower than those in Spain.
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