Despite the crisis in tomato profitability, they are still committed to their star product and will produce over 30 million kilos.
This is not the best of times for tomato. The Department of Agriculture of the Andalusian Government advanced this with some forecasts that indicate a 5% drop in surface area devoted to this crop in 2018/19. And at Fruit Today we have confirmed that many producers are opting for containing growth and even reducing plantations, changing them for other crops with better prices. However, there are companies that are battling against the odds for a crop that is their flagship. One of these cases is Coprohníjar. Specialising in cherry tomatoes, the company from Nijar foresees increasing its volumes compared to last year, and it will exceed 30 million kilos and 250 hectares. “Our strength lies in cherry tomatoes and the fact of offering a good product all year long,” says the chairman, Juan Segura. Its success lies, in addition to in-depth knowledge of the crop, in the “important” volume that they handle, giving priority to the most commercial types, but without forgetting the premium ones, a segment that continues to grow, particularly in the case of pear cherry tomatoes, which already represents around 10% of the surface area.
Only in this way is it possible to face up to the fierce competition from other sources. Not only are Morocco and Holland the ‘problem’. Countries like Poland and Belgium are “growing dramatically” in the summer segment and this reduces Spanish sales. “Consumers from these countries defend their own produce. They put their produce first and they pay more for it. If only we were to learn to do the same here.”
Coprohníjar continues adding new ecological production farms. In this campaign they already have 80 hectares and in the 2019/20 campaign this number will exceed 100. “When the conversion process has been completed, 30% of our total production will be bio.”
