"The tomato and cherry tomato supply continues to increase in the European markets, not only from Spain but from many countries, so competition is greater, and prices are falling because there is more supply than demand," says Miguel Angel Perez Segura, owner of Quality Fresh, regarding the current market situation.
The Almeria-based company is specialized in the production of organic cherry tomatoes, although it also grows organic Palermo red peppers. In addition to producing, it also packages and markets its products.
"The products leaving our facilities have been harvested that same day. This way, we guarantee maximum freshness to our customers and, consequently, a longer shelf life, as the products won't suffer storage-related degradation," says the owner of Quality Fresh. We pack in bulk but also in tubs of different formats and weights since we work with supermarkets and are present in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Spain.
According to Miguel Ángel, the organic and conventional cherry tomato season has been very unstable so far. "At the beginning, the production was much greater than expected due to the high temperatures we had. With such a large volume, prices were consequently low. Later, with the arrival of cold weather, the opposite happened. There was not enough production, and prices increased considerably due to the shortage."
Quality Fresh has an annual production schedule since it has greenhouses in Almería, in the Níjar area. "The climate of the Cabo de Gata Natural Park is extremely kind to our crops in winter," says Miguel Angel Perez.
"In summer, we work on a farm in the mountains of Granada, where we grow the crops under netting, taking advantage of the fact that temperatures in this area are not as high during the summer months. In this way, we can guarantee a year-round supply to our customers," he says.
Local productions are now starting to become available in central and northern Europe. "We focus our sales on our regular customers, striving to achieve continuity and loyalty in both the international and domestic markets. We are also working to open up other European markets for our organic products," says Miguel Ángel Pérez.
There are several challenges that all cherry tomato producers and exporters have to deal with. "Firstly, maintaining the same quality standards, from the beginning to the end of the campaign, but also achieving greater visibility for the organic production, as well as an increasingly greater presence in the international markets. Consumers should be persuaded to choose organic to facilitate an increase in the demand," says Miguel Angel Perez. "We can also not forget the need to optimize the use and reuse of resources and materials in order to grow in a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly way," he said.
For more information:
Miguel Ángel Pérez Segura
Quality Fresh SL
Tel.: +34 693536736
administracion@qualityfresh.es
www.qualityfresh.es