Although the greenhouse acreage in the region of La Axarquia has remained more or less stable compared to 2015, with 741 hectares (only nine hectares down), the protected vegetable production in the eastern part of the province is losing ground to subtropical fruits, mainly mangoes and avocados.
According to data from the Andalusian Government, greenhouse cultivation in La Axarquía is at its lowest level since 2010 (750). Furthermore, when compared to 2001, when the greenhouse acreage in the province amounted to 846 hectares, the decline is greater, with a drop of about 12 percent.
This is not the case in other Andalusian provinces, such as Almeria and Granada, where the area under protected cultivation continues to grow. Thus, in Almeria, since 2001, the greenhouse acreage has grown by 3,911 hectares (+14%), and in Granada by 337 hectares (+13%).
The latest mapping of greenhouses on the coast of Eastern Andalusia, carried out by the Council of Agriculture with satellite images, revealed that the total acreage amounts to 33,596 hectares.
By provinces, the counties of the coast of Almeria account for most of the greenhouse acreage, with a total of 30,007 hectares. Of these, 21,081 hectares are located in the region of Campo de Dalías, 8,245 in the region of Campo de Níjar and Bajo Andarax, and 681 in the region of Bajo Almanzora. In Granada, on the Costa Tropical, the acreage has been estimated at 2,848 hectares, while in Malaga, in the Vélez-Málaga region, there are only 741 hectares.
In Almeria, the municipality standing out the most is El Ejido, with 12,530 hectares, and in the case of Granada, it is Motril, with 1,137 hectares. Lastly, in Malaga, most of the acreage is in the municipality of Vélez-Málaga, with 383 hectares.
The municipality of Vélez-Málaga accounts for almost half of the greenhouses of the region of La Axarquía, with 383 hectares. Next in the ranking are Torrox (184), Algarrobo (91) and Nerja (39).
In the eastern region of Malaga, most of the greenhouses are devoted to the cultivation of horticultural products, both conventional and organic and even hydroponic; however, in recent years, many growers, attracted by the good prices of fruits, such as mangoes and avocados, have devoted their facilities to these subtropical crops, or to others such as papayas and pitahaya, to the detriment of protected cultivation.
Source: diariosur.es