Growers in Valencia continue to abandon production of some of the region’s most emblematic crops due to a lack of profitability.
A survey carried out by the agriculture minister show that in 2015 a total of 3,136ha of citrus cultivation was abandoned in the Community of Valencia, equivalent to a 2 per cent fall in the region’s acreage. Grape production, meanwhile, contracted by around 3.35 per cent or 2,386ha.
The study also revealed that persimmon production had increased by 23,57 per cent or 2,796ha this year. Other crops that have seen an expansion in planted area include pomegranates and avocados.
Cristóbal Aguado, president of young producer’s association AVA-ASAJA, said the figures showed that many producers were being forced to “throw in the towel as they are unable to accumulate losses indefinitely”.
The association said that more than 164,000ha of production had been abandoned in Valencia in recent years, which was “an outrageous situation which cannot be allowed to continue”. It has called on the regional government to take steps to address the situation immediately.
Although citrus cultivation has been falling over several years in Valencia, the region still accounts for 54 per cent of Spain’s total planted area. By contrast, Andalucía, where farms are larger and more mechanised, has seen a steady rise in production, with acreage up by 2.28 per cent in 2015.
