But that does not mean the area is a newcomer to agriculture. A whole generation before the market gardeners started sowing their crops, the region produced one of the most sought after grapes in the world.
Almería benefits from more hours of sunshine every year than anywhere else in Europe and is said to enjoy an eternal spring. It can therefore produce salad and vegetable crops outdoors at a time when the rest of the continent has to rely on expensive artificial heating and lighting systems.
As well as ample sunshine, tomato crops also benefit from water channelled out of seven reservoirs located in the province and three of them adjacent to key growing areas. And drip ferti-irrigation methods allow optimum control of plant nutrition and irrigation.
New production methods mean that yields have multiplied but growers have not lost their appreciation for nature. As a result environment-friendly integrated and organic systems are finding a firm footing among the province’s growers.
There are also more research stations in Almería than in any other part of Spain with all the major seedhouses represented in trials of new tomato varieties in the province.
Almost all exports of the fruit are destined for European countries. And for Almería the main markets are Germany and France, although the UK is also an important receiver for the fruit from the province. In fact, Almería is the Spanish region with the highest growth rate in tomatoes ahead of other key provinces such as Murcia, Tenerife and Las Palmas.
A closer examination of the provincial distribution of Spanish exports of the fruit clearly shows that Almería is the main exporter. Over the five years to 2000 exports increased with respect to the other producing regions to the extent that Almería now accounts for some 40 per cent of total Spanish tomato exports.
The different growing regions do not compete as fiercely on export markets as could be expected however as preferences have grown up over the years and regions have prioritised different countries.
An attractive feature for the Almerían sector when it comes to sendings to the UK is the high purchasing power of the market and its stable demand throughout the season: much more stable than other important destinations such as Germany, France and the Netherlands. And the UK remains steadily in second place in importance for all Spanish tomato exports for the whole season.
The main period of export activity for Almería is during January and February when exports reach a peak.
Cultivation of the fruit is largely in compost covered by sand and irrigated. Plants are under plastic, but some production groups have been working with forms of netting to provide protection but reduce temperatures in the warmer summer months. Others have been working on more northern European methods using rockwool to improve yields and quality.
Producers in the region have been concerned that competition from Morocco will increase as exports rise according to preferential trading agreements with the Mediterranean zone and Morocco in particular. But research carried out in 2004 (de Pablo Valenciano and Pérez Mesa) found that the rise in Moroccan exports is likely to cause Spanish exports to be diversified. Like Morocco, Almería sends a large concentration of its exports to France. However, the diversity of Almería’s export destinations - where Germany, the UK and the Netherlands account for much larger proportions of total Almerían sendings than they do of total Moroccan sendings - means that risk is minimised. And by diversifying its export offer away from standard round fruit, Almería will be even better placed in the future to withstand the competition.
The regional ministry of agriculture and fisheries for Andalusia drew up a horticultural sector plan for 2003-06 with the sector.
The plan found that there has been a feeling of crisis in the sector with land prices quadrupling and total income remaining static despite a doubling in production levels across horticulture in general. Tomato growers are responding with increased investment in technology to increase production efficiency and exploration of newer varieties and strains to enhance yields.
The variety profile in Almería has changed markedly since the turn of the century with greater production of cherry tomatoes and plum-on-the vine types that was forecast in the 1990s, becoming a reality.
This has happened to such an extent that the production sector in Almería no longer views tomatoes as a single product line, as they have segmented into almost a dozen different markets: round, plum, cherry, beef, super-taste, on and off the vine, long-life etc.
The sector has learned that it is a means of spreading risk and also meeting the demands of profitable markets such as the UK, which has become the biggest single market for exports of Almería’s cherry toms.
Considerable work has also been done to tackle disease problems. Producers have been switching to more resistant varieties as well as grafting vines in order to produce stronger plants. They have also looked to physical barriers such as special plastic and additional netting. These have been particularly effective against the tomato yellow leaf curl virus which hit growers in Spain in general hard during the early part of the decade. As a result cultivation has also been spreading away from the traditional sea of plastic in western Almería leading some to produce further away in the east of the region and limit any potential disease spread.
Key varieties are Daniela, Tomás, Atletico and Durinta.
There has been a definite move towards adding value in the key export markets for Almería’s tomatoes, but this does not always remain in the production zones.
Customers in the UK have been quick to realise the benefits of shortening the supply chain and establishing closer links with the production base in Almería and this has resulted in UK companies having their own production base in the region or consolidated groups of Spanish senders establishing their own marketing operations in the UK.
Production efficiency is intrinsically tied to effective use of water resources in the area and there has been tremendous investment on the part of the authorities in a regional irrigation plan. However, there remains concern over the long-term availability of water in Almería and regional authorities have been developing solutions such as desalination plants.
The plan is ambitious, but has had successes such as the introduction of measures to counteract virus problems on tomatoes, the introduction of the irrigators’ advisory service and the promotion of research development and training in the tomato sector through the La Mojonera Agricultural Research & Training Centre.
SECURITY FOR THE CUSTOMER
Guarantee Securitam has two main functions: as a brand it is a vehicle for the promotion of produce grown by the most modern and pioneering producer/exporters in Almería, and as a quality mark it guarantees that products that bear it comply with the exigencies of UNE155001 and EurepGAP.
The seal appears on a number of lines from the province that meet the right criteria including tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, melons, lettuce, watermelons, aubergines, courgettes and green beans.
The quality seal is a guarantee of full traceability and food safety, of care for the environment and for employees, that goes even beyond EurepGAP requirements and is audited by an independent body annually.
Guarantee Securitam also counts promotion and communication as part of its role and it has a presence at all the main UK and wider European trade fairs.
The quality seal groups 4,000 growers who between them produce on almost 7,000 hectares in the south-eastern Spanish region, growing 600,000 tonnes of nine different products across a whole range of varieties, of which some 400,000t are exported.
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