Valencia’s stonefruit sector is hopeful of receiving improved prices this season as a result of a reduction, over recent seasons, of the volumes of peaches, nectarines, apricots and plums produced in the eastern Spanish region.
According to estimates from Valencian agricultural association Ava-Asaja, stonefruit production in the region has fallen an average of 30 per cent – a little over 32,000 tonnes – over the past five campaigns.
The organisation said the drop in production had come about partly as a result of winter frost damage, but also as a consequence of a gradual reduction in the production area in the region, with the amount of orchards having decreased by 62 per cent since 2005.
However, Ava-Asaja president Cristóbal Aguado said in the statement that producers and marketers should take in account the reduced availability of the crop when it came to negotiating prices, suggesting that this could positively benefit the sector.
