Spanish fruit and vegetable interprofessional body Hortiespaña has announced plans to expand its marketing campaign promoting the quality and safety of the country’s greenhouse grown produce into Europe.
The association launched the “Lo estamos haciendo bien’ (We’re doing it right) campaign in Spain in 2017 to “debunk false myths” about greenhouse production in Almería and Granada, and reverse the negative image of what is disparagingly referred to as the sea of plastic that characterises the region’s intensive horticulture.
Hortiespaña said it is already working on a three-year promotional programme, beginning in 2020, which will be supported by EU funds.
“We want to convey a positive message to the millions of consumers [in the European Union] in order to maintain or increase the consumption of the vegetables that are produced under plastic,” the association said.
Hortiespaña was formed in 2015 to represent the interests of Spanish greenhouse horticulture with a single voice and to promote research and investment in innovation. The body represents virtually all of cultivation under plastic, which covers an area of almost 43,000ha and produces more than 3.1m tonnes of fruits and vegetables generating €3.275bn a year.
But it has faced criticism from within the sector for failing to adequately protect the interests of it grower members.
“It might well be true that the companies and auctions that depend on the greenhouses are ‘doing it right’ but this is not the perception of our growers…who are suffering from the price war in the national and European markets,” one commentator said.
