The Raf tomato, one of the most representative tomato varieties in the greenhouses of Almería, is successfully weathering the coronavirus crisis. "Prices fell sharply at first, but they soon went up again afterwards, which made up for the lost ground," said Luis Miguel Fernández, manager of the Union of Fruit and Vegetable Growers' Associations of Almería (Coexphal) to diariodealmeria.es. This organization is made up of large companies that market this tomato variety, including CASI. “Sales started with a downward price trend as a result of the declining demand from the catering industry, but the decline did not raise any alarms, as consumer demand remains more than satisfactory.”
In this new season, which has been clearly marked by the uncertainty caused by the pandemic, growers have remained loyal to Raf tomatoes. Fernández says that the number of Raf tomato growers has not decreased significantly. "The supply can certainly keep up with the current demand."
The balance this season has not been bad at all so far. "The average price from week 40 to week 51 is 30% higher than last year," said the manager of Coexphal, who adds that the current price is also higher than that at the end of last year. The prices at origin amount to around € 5 per kilo. On the wholesale market in Madrid, a price of € 6 was recorded on December 16, while € 8 were paid on the wholesale market of Almería last week.
Source: diariodealmeria.es
