The Covid-19 pandemic complicated the 2020 strawberry campaign in Mediterranean producing countries.
According to the estimates of the Spanish-Franco-Italian-Portuguese Strawberry Contact Group, the strawberry production will grow this year in Italy by 9% and, on the contrary, it will decrease in Spain by 2%.
Regarding 2020, the Mediterranean producing countries agreed on the difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, especially due to the paralysis of consumer demand during the months of confinement which, in the case of France, was overcome by calling for national product is consumed.
In fact, Xavier Mas, head of the Association of Organizations of Strawberry Producers of France, AOP Fraise de France said that imports fell in the period from March to May by 21% in volume and 10% in value compared to the same period from the previous year.
In the case of Italy, those responsible for the Italian sector, led by Pietro Ciardiello, of the OI Ortofruttailtalia, reported that in this 2021 an increase of 9% of the planted area is expected compared to the previous year, up to 3,962 hectares and, consequently also, of the production. As for foreign trade, Italy dedicates a large part of its production to domestic consumption, which means that the export volume is not very high, having reached a volume of 10,672 t in 2020, 17% less than in the previous year, although with a cut of the exported value of 6%, up to about 30,028 million euros.
Regarding imports to the transalpine country, they also decreased in volume by 27% in 2020, remaining at 30,364 t and with Spain as the first supplier, from where 24,890 tons were imported (-28%).
Also, those responsible for the Portuguese strawberry sector, who participated in the meeting of the European Contact Group highlighted that the strawberry area in the neighboring country is still small, with just 323 ha of cultivation and a production of about 10,000 tons.
Source: Agro negocios (2021)