The earliest leek season in Europe, that of Cadiz, Spain, has already started. Besides being the earliest, Cadiz is also the main producer of this vegetable in the spring months. Lower volumes are expected this year, so prices should also be more stable. In the coming weeks, stocks of old leeks in storage will be gradually sold out and prices are expected to rebound.
"Today we have already started marketing the first new leeks of the season, the first in Europe, with better prices and demand compared to the beginning of the previous season," said Jesús Lucas Rodríguez, from the commercial department of the Virgen del Rocío cooperative, which is part of the Unica Fresh group and is specialized in the production of carrots in bunches, potatoes, sweet potatoes and leeks.
"We have started with a few pallets, but from tomorrow we will start to increase our volumes, as we see a lot of interest in starting with the new crop," said Jesús Lucas.
The results of the 2022 campaign were very negative for producers and this has resulted in a reduction of the acreage in Cadiz.
"It was a ruinous season for many growers. That is why less has been sown in areas such as Jerez or Lebrijas," says the sales manager of this Cadiz cooperative. "We will have the same area and a similar production to last year thanks to the support of our loyal customers. Given the lower supply in general, we are confident that prices will remain stable throughout the campaign."
The leeks from this entity will be marketed until the end of May or early June and are intended for both the domestic market and for export, mainly to Germany, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
According to the sales manager of this cooperative, the prices of old leeks stored in chambers, which come mainly from France, Belgium and the Netherlands, have dropped by around 60% in the last month after months at high levels.
"It has been a strange winter in which leeks have been quite expensive, which has led to more speculation and to the product being stored for longer in chambers. But in the last few weeks there has been a rush to sell it and there has been more supply than usual. I expect the market to be clean of old stocks by between next week and the next," says Jesús Lucas.
For more information:
Jesús Lucas Rodríguez
Unica Fresh
M +34 687 045 760
[email protected]
unicafresh.es