Currently, most countries in Europe are able to produce tomatoes, which is why companies like Grupo Caicedo believe that "it does not make much sense to export them, because you'd have to compete against the local production of each country with the additional cost of transportation," explains Marín. Furthermore, "The price of plum tomatoes, for example, is good," said the representative of Grupo Caicedo. At the moment, a kilo of plum tomatoes is auctioned at 0.15 Euro, while first class ones go for 0.40 Euro. These prices, says Marín, are more or less the same as last year's.
In recent years, the volume of plum tomatoes has increased by 15 or 20% each year. "This is what happens when a product remains profitable for a couple of seasons, that more growers abandon other products in order to plant it," explains Marín. We are also dealing with a tomato variety that facilitates this situation, since "It is easy to cultivate and consumption is on the rise; however, we will end up seeing exactly what has happened with many other crops; there will come a time when there will be oversupply and prices will become unbalanced," affirms Marín.
In recent years, Spanish plum tomatoes have been competing against Moroccan, which also reach Spain and other European countries. "The prices they offer are much lower, and when you consider shipping some of your production overseas, you always clash with the Moroccan," he concludes.
For more information:
Juan Marín Andreu
Mercacaniles grupo Caicedo S.L
Tel.: +34 645011356