Spain's Unión de Pequeños Agricultores (UPA) estimates that this year won't see the asparagus harvest surpass the 30 million kilo mark.
As reported on freshplaza.es, Nicolás Chica, General Secretary of UPA said that currently, with only 15 days remaining to the end of this year's campaign, "desperation has arisen among farmers", who, due to terrible weather conditions saw over 50 per cent of their production lost.
Co-ops have cushioned the decrease with an expansion to planted areas, so the expected fall will equal approximately 30 per cent, compared to last year's figures.
The Region of Granada is able, under normal conditions, to produce 40 million kilos of asparagus, from which 72 per cent is earmarked for export. "It possibly is the most exported product", said Chica, referring to Granada's thousands of small family-run farms.
Besides the weather, the fact that asparagus came up thinner this year is also likely to hurt the industry, as this will reflect in lower prices for these asparagus.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Gabriela Guédez. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
