The Catalan Fruit Business Association (AFRUCAT) has presented a study on the production costs of peaches, nectarines and flat peaches in Catalonia.
According to the study’s conclusions, the average production cost for peaches and nectarines in Catalonia will reach €14,298/ha in 2026, representing an increase of between 10% and 15% compared with the average cost for the 2020-2024 period, which stood at €12,846/ha in constant 2024 values.
“This study is part of a way of understanding agri-food policies in Catalonia. From the Department of Agriculture, together with the different sectors, we are working to make the food system increasingly competitive and transparent,” said the Secretary General for Food, Rosa Cubel.
Cubel also stressed the importance of creating “a fairer, more equitable and more cohesive food system. In this sense, this study provides a rigorous methodology and is based on real accounting data from Catalan farms, helping our sector to have useful tools for decision-making and to support farmers with evidence-based measures aimed at ensuring the viability of our agri-food system.”
Production cost of €0.585/kg
Based on an estimated yield of 24,431 kg per hectare, 8.6% higher than the average of the 2020-2024 sample, the study calculates that the average production cost stands at €0.585/kg.
This figure is distributed between €0.260/kg in general costs and €0.229/kg in family labour.
To these costs, packing and marketing expenses must be added. Considering an indicative packing cost of €0.506/kg, the total cost of packed peaches and nectarines is estimated at €1.234/kg.
A tool to bring transparency to the sector
The authors underline that the study is not intended to establish selling prices, but to provide an objective estimate of production costs that can help improve the sector’s economic knowledge and offer reference information for commercial negotiations.
The data come from the XCAC, an information system that collects, validates and analyses the agricultural accounts of Catalan farms, using a methodology based on product costs and adjusted through official price indices.
AFRUCAT expects an earlier end to the summer campaign
AFRUCAT expects this summer’s stone fruit campaign to end earlier than usual, as a result of the advance being observed in the ripening and harvesting of different varieties.
The start of production of mid-season varieties, with larger sizes, has helped balance the proportion of available calibres and, consequently, the different commercial formats.
This greater availability of sizes has contributed to market stabilisation and has helped ease the downward pressure on prices seen at the beginning of the campaign.
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At the same time, as harvesting progresses, the sector is confirming that the production calendar remains ahead of previous campaigns. In some varieties, this advance is around ten days compared with recent harvests and can reach twenty days compared with the traditional calendar of previous years.
According to AFRUCAT’s forecasts, this evolution could lead to an earlier end to the summer campaign.
“This scenario could lead to greater concentration of demand in the final stretch of the campaign and more limited product availability. Good commercial planning among the different actors in the chain will be especially important to ensure service to customers,” said Jaume Lozano, president of AFRUCAT’s Stone Fruit Committee.
The association expects that lower fruit availability in the final phase of the campaign could translate into higher prices. This development, in addition to responding to the balance between supply and demand, is considered necessary in a context in which production costs continue to affect the sector’s profitability.
