Rabat – In a season marked by frosts and poor harvests in Europe, Morocco will have the opportunity to step up its peach exports to the continent.
Europe’s biggest peach and nectarine producers — Italy, Spain, France, and Greece — experienced their lowest harvests in over 30 years, due to the prolonged and unexpected frosts that swept the continent throughout March and April, reports RFI. Countries like Morocco, Turkey, and Tunis, will have the chance to step in and satisfy Europe’s demand for the juicy fruit.
For the four European producers, the peach and nectarine crop is expected to reach approximately 1.9 million tons, 16% less than the year before, one that was already marked by poor harvest. RFI reports that “industry professionals say they haven’t seen a crop like this since 1991.”
Greece experienced a 45% shrinkage in crop yield, while France saw a drop of 34%. On one hand it highlights an opportunity for other Mediterenean countries to step in and step up its production; the numbers also suggest a high likelihood that Europeans will have pay a high premium for the fruit, both for those grown on the continent – due to low supply, as well as those imported from abroad, due to import tariffs and shipping costs.
In 2020, Morocco exported over $1.36 million worth of peaches, according to data made available by Tridge.
Meanwhile, Coexphal, a Spanish fruit and vegetable association based in Almeria, has launched a campaign to boycott products of Moroccan origin. In an open letter, the Almerian association aims to “educate the end consumer by showing him how he can identify the Maghrebian product in supermarkets.”
While the Iberian producers ride the wave of the Morocco-Spain diplomatic rift, data for Moroccan exports to Almeria — Spain’s biggest producer of fruit and vegetables — suggests that the boycott is colored by self-serving interests. Morocco exported approximately 25.8 million kilograms of vegetables to Almeria-based companies between January and March of 2021.
