Spanish cooperative Consum has increased the purchase of locally sourced stone fruit by a fifth (20%) this season to exceed 7,000 tonnes.
Consum sources a majority of its stone fruit from the Valencian Community and Catalonia. Other regions that have also contributed include Murcia, Andalusia, Extremadura and Aragon.
The retailer has increased its purchase of peaches and apricots by almost 25% compared to last year; and plums and peaches by 12% and 15%, respectively.
Most of these stone fruit varieties come from local farmers in Murcia, Badajoz, Lleida and Seville, the company noted.
Stone Fruit Season
The stone fruit season commenced in June with red peaches, followed by yellow peaches, flat peaches, nectarines, apricots and plums. The campaign lasts until approximately the end of October.
The retailer plans to increase the purchase of stone fruit by 12%, to around 1,200 tonnes, from Serranía del Turia in the Valencian Community.
In Catalonia, purchases from Fruites del Camp de Lleida are expected to reach 260,000 kilograms, or 15% more than the previous season.
Local Sourcing
In 2023, Consum purchased goods worth €2.90 billion from Spain to boost local businesses.
The company purchased 98.6% of its goods from national suppliers, of which 66.9% were from local suppliers in the autonomous communities in which it operates.
It also invested in regional products, offering more than 2,500 items last year that are exclusive to certain provinces or towns, catering to the tastes of local consumers.
Consum's campaigns for citrus fruits with the Denomination of Origin 'Cítricos Valencianos' and various stone fruits are significant.
Each season, the Cooperative also partners with other protected and locally sourced products, including Benicarló Artichoke (Protected Designation of Origin), Vinalopó Grapes (PDO), Girona Apples (Protected Geographical Indication), and Valencia Tigernuts (DO), among others.
