Early apricot production in Murcia is going through a critical period this season with fresh consumption down and processors not taking up any fruit yet.
“The situation is ruinous,” growers’ organisation Coag said in a statement. “Demand for fruit destined for the fresh market has slowed right down due to competition from other furits. The only outlet is processing, but the processors are just letting time go by and are not buying the fruit which is putting the apricot sector deep into crisis.”
The organisation speculates that processors are waiting to buy fruit for their operations from more northerly production areas in Spain, but in the meantime growers in Murcia are suffering. “The entry of fruit from third countries, from all over the world, means that consumption of seasonal products is declining,” the statement said.
Now Coag is calling on the regional authorities to bring withdrawal mechanisms to bear so that the permitted 10 per cent of the crop can be taken out of the marketplace at a price of €0.14 and bring some relief to the situation.
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