In Spain, the temperatures are like in summer, the water reservoirs are practically empty, the soil is hungry for water. This does not bode well for the otherwise ailing agriculture.
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Spain threatens to become a desert. Even before the summer, the Iberian Peninsula is groaning under a heat wave. In the south of the country there are already temperatures that are only known in summer: 35 degrees in Córdoba, 36 degrees in Seville and 27 degrees in Almeria – the region that is known as the vegetable and fruit garden of Europe.
The desert province has greenhouses the size of 43,000 football fields and produces millions of tons of vegetables and fruits, mainly tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, avocados and strawberries. All of Europe benefits from the white plastic desert and the Spaniards also benefit from the “mar del plástico” (plastic sea) – the world‘s largest area under plastic.
The plastic sea from above. bild: NASA Earth Observatory
The driest region in Europe will generate almost 4 million euros in 2022 through exports. But for how much longer?
Water resources are overexploited due to monocultures that require a lot of water. Farmers in the region have been sounding the alarm for years. The feared crop failures have now become reality: Spanish tomato, cucumber and aubergine production has collapsed by 25 percent in just one month. The berry season has only just begun, and part of the harvest has already had to be destroyed. The reason: Due to the drought, the fruit does not meet the requirements of the food companies.
The country is still looking for solutions, but the idea of fruit and vegetables that require a lot of water, such as avocados or mangoes, is highly controversial. After all, both types of fruit sell well abroad.
A worker collects tomatoes in a greenhouse in Almería.Image: AP
Among the most exported products are citrus fruits – with oranges leading the way, followed by greenhouse vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers, as well as outdoor growing of lettuce and melons.
Effects in Switzerland
Spain is by far the most important exporter of fruit and vegetables in Europe – also for Switzerland. In 2022 around 400,000 tons of vegetables and almost 600,000 tons of fruit were imported. “The regions of Almeria, Valencia, Murcia and Huelva are important in Spain. Depending on the situation, berries, citrus fruits, tomatoes and melons come from there,” Coop said when asked by watson. Other important exporters are Italy, France and the Netherlands.
Coop is not yet feeling the effects. The competitor Migros is also green: “Due to the drought, we feel a certain tension on the market and are monitoring the situation.” From around May, the largest buyer of local products will switch to Swiss fruit and vegetables. In the case of popular vegetables such as melons, which are hardly ever grown in Switzerland, other procurement sources are checked.
Only at Aldi does a “slight restriction” related to the weather conditions become noticeable. “But since the Swiss season is currently starting, we can compensate for the bottleneck with products from our local suppliers.” The discounter does not reveal which varieties are involved: “The restriction is spread over several vegetable products.”
Green gold has become more expensive
However, not only Spanish fruit and vegetables suffer from water shortages, but also the plantations of olives, corn, rice and sunflowers. The harvest failures of olives in the last year are currently making themselves felt in the wallet: “In the case of olive oil, the prices had to be adjusted due to the poor harvest and scarce availability,” says Migros.
The olive oil industry is severely affected by chronic water shortages.
picture: AP
Unlike in Switzerland, some supermarkets in Great Britain introduced purchasing restrictions at the end of February due to supply shortages from Spain and Morocco. For a few weeks, fruits such as tomatoes, peppers or cucumbers could not be bought at will.
“We cannot control the climate in Spain,” said British Minister for Agriculture and Environment Therese Coffey. The rain that Spain is currently craving cannot be controlled either. There is no improvement in sight: temperatures of up to 40 degrees are expected in Andalusia at the weekend.