Strawberry production in the main Spanish growing area of Huelva is suffering the effects of high winds and heavy rainfall, which will delay the start of the export season and cause heavy crop losses.
José Luis García-Palacios, president of producers’ association Asaja Huelva, told freshinfo: “The weather was very kind in October and November and we had mild temperatures, which brought the crops on. We were even harvesting some fruit in December. We have had a long stoppage since it started raining on 18 December, but growers have been going into their fields to take out damaged fruit in order to avoid the dreaded botrytis.”
Low temperatures and a lack of sunlight have also served to slow down plant development and growth, leading to misshapen fruit. High winds this month have damaged a lot of the plastic tunnels that growers use to protect their crops.
García-Palacios said: “Growers have probably lost about 40 per cent of their fruit from the first flowering. Obviously, some areas within Huelva have been harder hit than others and it is the low-lying production zones that have had the worst of it. But there are still another four and a half months of the season for the situation to recover.”
John Grieve of UK importer Lisons does not expect to start receiving fruit from Spain until next week. He said: “The start to the season is delayed and probably won’t get going for another week. It is a bit too early to tell when volumes will get into full swing for a lot of growers as agronomists are still making their assessments, but we will probably run a few days behind last year.”
According to another sector body, Freshuelva, there have been significant shifts in the area dedicated to soft-fruit crops. Raspberry acreage in Huelva is down almost 12 per cent on last season, while strawberry area in the region is down some two per cent on last year, to 6,385 hectares.
