Producers from El Bierzo are ready to start harvesting Conference pear, the first summer fruit, around the week of August 19th.
According to Pablo Linares, managing director of Alimentos de Calidad del Bierzo, determining the exact moment to start harvesting depends on the fruit's ripeness and evolution. According to estimates, the harvest should start in the week of the 19th, but advances in maturation could advance or delay it. However, it certainly won't start before August 15.
The sector expects an average harvest, similar to the 2023 season, in which they produced 13.5 million kilos, i.e. 25% more than in 2022. Thus, they don't expect an overproduction or shortage of pears.
Producers expect the fruit will have good quality in general, despite the damage caused by the heavy hailstorms at the end of June. Areas affected by hail will require more rigorous fruit selection to meet the quality standards. However, the quality of the conference pears remains high in the areas that were less impacted or unaffected by hail. Hail didn't affect much of the production area, allowing producers to maintain a cautious optimism about the general quality of the harvest.
Source: elbierzonoticias.com