Fruit and vegetable growers in Spain\\'s Andalusia region are in “grave danger” as practically no product made a profit in the first quarter of the new season, the industry\\'s trade association has said.
Trade organisation Hortyfruta has issued the warning as figures show the value of products sold up to November 2011 fell 23 per cent against the previous period.
The total volume of products sold has increased by 5 per cent but the average price has dropped 22 per cent.
In a statement, Hortyfruta has called on the relevant European, national and regional authorities to take “immediate” and “drastic” measures.
It has said the analysis shows the sector is in “grave danger of crashing” and cannot continue at the mercy of price fluctuations in the market, season after season.
The statement said: “If the situation goes on like this, the Spanish horticultural sector will disappear, along with thousands of jobs. In the province of Almeria, where the economy directly depends on horticulture, unemployment is currently at around 30 per cent.”
Products such as tomoatoes and peppers have lost 30 per cent and 32 per cent respectively while volume has increased 10 per cent.
It is a similar story for cucumber, courgettes and aubergines. Green bean is the only product to turn a profit. Prices are down 20 per cent but a 70 per cent increase in production has led to a 35 per cent increase in profit.
The organisation believes that the EU - Morocco trade agreement must be reconsidered, given that the catastrophic consequences for Andalusian horticulture were never assessed.
French Green Party MP, Jose Bove, the speaker on the agricultural protocol of the Trade Agreement with Morocco, has asked the International Trade Commission for the European Parliament to reject this agreement.
The MEP said it does not benefit small and medium farmers of the North African country and is detrimental to the fruit and vegetable sector in Europe, among others.
The Spanish Federation of Associations of Producers and Exporters of Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers and Live Plants (FEPEX) has said it agrees with Bove that the agreement with Morocco will have a devastating impact on Spanish horticulture.
