Spanish fresh produce exports declined in value during 2009 and only rose slightly in volume, according to figures released by producer-exporters’ association Fepex.
Some 9.4 million tonnes were exported across all product lines, just 0.6 per cent down on the previous year, while values fell by 2.4 per cent to €7.812 billion (£7.03bn). The stabilisation in volume and decline in value are a reflection of the economic crisis that prevailed during 2009, Fepex said in a statement.
In the salads and vegetable sub-sectors, volumes were down 0.7 per cent and values fell by four per cent. Spain’s main export in this sector is tomatoes, which suffered an 8.8 per cent volume decline and a 2.6 per cent fall in value.
A dramatic fall in income was experienced by capsicum growers who saw their revenue tumble 22 per cent on an increase of 5.6 per cent in volume.
Fruit growers fell prey to rising volume - up 1.6 per cent, and falling value - down 1.3 per cent. Average fruit prices fell by 2.9 per cent, but some sectors fared better than others. Citrus performed well and exports reached 3.2m tonnes up 2.5 per cent on 2008, as values also rose - by 3.7 per cent.
The UK remains Spain’s third-largest export destination after Germany and France and last year was worth €1.035bn.
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