Spanish salad supplies have been suffering from unseasonably cold weather this month and there could be more cool temperatures on the way.
"Murcia did not have its traditional warm sunny weather at the beginning of January," said Peter Davis of importer-exporter Davis (Louth) Ltd which has its own operation in Spain. "It was cold, wet and windy and barely above freezing, lettuce did not grow, weights were light and the colour was appalling on some of the exotic lines. Weights have improved now - they were 150-180g a head of frisée instead of 300g - but we have had to mix and match sourcing from Spain, Italy and France to meet demand."
At Das International, Ian Dennis reported temperatures were cooling again mid-week. "Last week was much warmer , but it has been cooler since Monday and the forecast says more cool temperatures are on the way," said Dennis. "Everyone is on top of the crop and cutting is ahead of schedule on iceberg, but the product has been growing more slowly than usual. We do not expect a gap in supply but if it does turn cooler again it will create pressure on the marketplace. People have been cutting on minimum weights: 300-400g a head as opposed to the preferred 400-500g."
This weather pattern of early January may be one to watch in the future. "This is the third year running that the weather has caught people out, and this is becoming typical," said Davis.
