According to data from the consulting firm Nielsen, the online trade of fresh fruits and vegetables in Spain has grown by up to 80% since the outbreak of the coronavirus and the declaration of the state of alarm. The fear of contagion in crowded supermarkets and the demands and recommendations of the health authorities to limit street outings led to an increase in online fresh-product sales, which in 2019 accounted for 0.6% of total online purchases, according to a report on Food Consumption in Spain published by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food.
The growing confidence in companies that market fresh fruit and vegetable products, which deliver less than 24 or 48 quality products freshly harvested from Spanish orchards, has allowed these companies to increase their turnover and workforce to meet orders. Small producers also avoid intermediaries and obtain better prices that allow them to have sustainable production.
In addition, the need to change habits for so many months has allowed them to have loyal new online consumers in a matter of months. The goal is that customers that were forced by circumstances to make online purchases continue to make their purchases online once the pandemic ends.
An opportunity for European products
In this context, the Region of Murcia has a great opportunity to be a leader in online sales, as other producing areas that have bet heavily on e-commerce for years, such as Almeria or Catalonia. Online sales of two of the region's best-known products, peach and melon, via the melocotondecieza.es or elsecretodemitierra.com websites reflect the importance of positioning and selling these fruits online.
To take advantage of the various digital marketing tools to compete with other products Spain's production and the quality of the Region's products must be promoted at international fairs and online.
Source: laverdad.es