Spanish grapes are facing increasingly fierce competition from the Egyptian production. "This year, the pressure from Egyptian grapes on the European market is greater than ever," affirms Jesús Gómez, manager of Frutas Esther.
"Although this campaign we'll have a smaller amount of table grapes in Murcia, our competitors will supply significantly higher volumes, so prices are lower than at the start of the previous season, when we arrived into a relatively empty market. "This year, India has put pressure on Egypt, and the latter, in turn, has put pressure on us. It is a domino effect; we don't know if this will be a one-time deal or a trend," explains Jesús Gómez.
Egypt, as well as other countries outside Europe, are increasing their production of grapes and other products, and their greater presence in Europe is a major threat to European producers due to their lower costs.
"Europe, politically speaking, does not protect its growers; quite the opposite, it motivates those countries to produce more thinking about the European market. It is illogical for more than 3,000 Designations of Origin to exist in Europe and for European authorities to do this at the same time. European importers are naturally motivated to buy more because of the "low cost" factor rather than because of other parameters," assures the producer and exporter.
Last week, the table grape campaign started for Frutas Esther, which is based in Abarán, Murcia. The company mainly markets seedless grapes, which are mainly intended for Europe, as well as other more distant markets, such as Africa and Asia.
"We are waiting for the opening of the Chinese market for Spanish table grapes; a product than can be shipped over long distances in an easier way than stonefruit thanks to its shelf life and whose consumption is really high in that country," concludes Jesús Gómez.
Jesús Gómez Yelo
Frutas Esther, S.A.
Ctra Estación km 1,9
30550 Abarán. Murcia. SPAIN
T: +34 968770000+34 968770000
M: +34 676481177+34 676481177
[email protected]
www.frutasesther.es