In less than a decade, Natural Tropic has become a very strong operator. The company is ever growing and reinvesting in organic production.
The company, which started off as just an exporter, today opens its doors towards the home market, a destination where it has moved on from selling to the wholesale market to selling to the large retail sector. “Domestic consumers recognise our produce more and more and are ready to pay for it”, Prudencio López, owner of the Andalusian firm explains.
In spite of this, the markets where it has greatest penetration continue to be in Europe, with France, England, Switzerland, Germany, Holland and Scandinavia at the forefront, both for conventional and for ecological production.
The company’s activity is consistent over the twelve months of the year, since each season the import volumes are on the increase. These volumes in many cases, such as the current avocado campaign, with very low local production, will compensate for the lack of Spanish produce.
In spite of this, the executive emphasises his link with farming. “In my family we have always been linked to the land and production is our main asset, since the goal is to move on from our current 70 hectares, to 250.”
The organic production, on a farm located in Benamargosa, will also be an important area for development.
In addition to the avocado and mango offer, Natural Tropic is complementing its portfolio with another two tropical fruits: the kumquat and the cherimoya or ‘custard apple’, from farms that are located on the Granada and Malaga coasts.
2015 involved the starting off of a new activity: avocado processing (guacamole) and this year will see a strengthening of this area, since there will be new products in the processed range.
Although both the avocado and the mango productions during this campaign are not abundant, the executive states that “the Spanish tropical fruits experience an expansive cycle and the work of the pioneers is to be admired, as they knew how to give their produce an added value, reaching the end consumer, in such a way that the large distributing companies work from the region.”
For all these reasons, and in view of some of the problems the sector is facing up to, such as the lack of water, López sets forth the idea that “the future involves creating a strong, strategic base, because the food chain is essential for social development and we have a bonus point as we are a producing region.”
