Spain: Tomato prices on the rise due to shortages
The 2015/16 tomato campaign is looking very promising in terms of profitability due to shortages, wi…The 2015/16 tomato campaign is looking very promising in terms of profitability due to shortages, with volumes estimated to have dropped by between 30% and 35% compared to last season. Delays in the transplantation because of the high temperatures this summer, together with problems in the early harvests, have caused prices at origin to soar. These have gone from an average of 1 Euro/kilo in September to around 0.79/kilo in the first half of October, according to figures supplied by the Prices and Markets Observatory of Andalusia. In the second half of October, prices remain high, with prices reaching up to 1.20 Euro/kg in the case of tomatoes on the vine.
In Almeria, the main producing area, the campaign will peak in November, when larger volumes will hit the market. It will likely be then when prices will go back to normal levels.
Low interest in long life tomatoes
In this first stage of the campaign, we are seeing a growing trend towards ribbed and on the vine tomatoes, which are gaining ground with the long life, primarily in the area of Almeria. Moreover, producers who have decided not to grow tomatoes at this start to the season have mostly chosen to cultivate courgettes, as their implementation involves lower costs and prices in the past two seasons have been good, as reported by the Observatory.