While lettuce crops in Murcia suffered severe hail damage two weeks ago seriously disrupting availability, growers in Almería are now leaving their product in the fields due to excess volumes.
Pascual Soler, vice-president of growers’ organisation Asaja-Almería said: “Barely 60 per cent of the crop has been cut because of the low prices on the market. When prices are good, growers cut all their lettuce. But there is a substantial portion of the crop that is either very small or very large and that is what is remaining uncut.”
Although low temperatures in the winter helped regulate production and in turn regulate product coming forward onto the market, warmer temperatures in the spring have brought product on in a flush.
Producers are also complaining that the low level of sterling means that prices paid back to growers from the UK are low. “As a result we are sending product beyond the UK to other markets and these are now becoming saturated,” said one producer. Growers and marketing desks are also having to deal with downward price pressure from customers.
Soler said: “Things are very bad for lettuce producers, they do not even have the hope that there will be a last-minute recovery for their season, which only has about three weeks to run, such is the extent of the oversupply situation they face. On top of this, consumption appears to be falling. This will be the second poor season in a row.”
Producers and the authorities are still calculating the damage to crops in Murcia caused by the hail on April 7.
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