The pepper season is fully underway in the Spanish Region of Murcia, with some excess production because of imbalances in the plantations due to abundant rainfall at the end of winter and the beginning of spring, and with strong pressure on prices because of an oversupply of Dutch products.
"Since June, pepper harvest volumes have been 20% higher than usual compared to other years," says Ángel García Izquierdo, Sales Director of the Murcian company Soltir, one of the largest pepper auctions in Murcia. "Delays in the harvests due to persistent rainfall in March and April resulted in lower volumes and stable prices," he says.
"From June onwards, the volumes that were lacking in previous months started arriving, and prices have dropped to the lowest levels seen in years, around 0.60 € per kilo at source, which falls below the break-even point for the growers," says García Izquierdo.
Nonetheless, according to Soltir's Sales Director, "the fact that Murcia has 20% more peppers than usual is not enough to destabilize the European markets." The Netherlands has already been supplying large volumes of peppers for weeks. "How can Dutch producers sell peppers so cheaply to European chains? I don't think it is profitable for them; in fact, their prices are currently lower than those of Spanish peppers."
"With such a large pepper supply this summer, the Netherlands could have a production gap between September and October, instead of in November, as is usually the case. Pepper harvesting dates may be misaligned, but eventually, the plants always end up producing the same amounts," says Ángel Izquierdo.
For more information:
Ángel García Izquierdo
Soltir
Tel.: +34 968 334 800
Autovía San Javier-Murcia, km 22.
30592 San Cayetano. Murcia. Spain
[email protected]
www.soltir.com