Moroccan Fruit and Vegetable Prices Plummet Despite Global Challenges

According to Rachid Benali, president of the Moroccan Confederation of Agriculture and Rural Development (COMADER), quoted by Le Matin du Sahara et du Maghreb, the current drop in fruit and vegetable prices is explained in the first place by the climatic conditions which have accelerated the ripening of certain crops such as tomatoes. The halt in Moroccan exports, following the decision of the Mauritanian authorities to increase customs duties on goods from Morocco, could also justify this downward trend in fruit and vegetable prices. Added to this is the halving of fruit and vegetable exports to European markets.

But this observed drop in fruit and vegetable prices should not last, according to Rachid Benali, who believes that "the effect currently observed on prices is temporary and will fade in the next two months." "Once the volumes of tomatoes currently offered on the markets have been exhausted, prices will rise to levels practically comparable to those of 2022," he explained.

Lahoucine Aderdour, president of the Moroccan Interprofessional Federation of Fruit and Vegetable Production and Export (FIFEL), denounces for his part "the exorbitant prices of fruits and vegetables", questioning the "real cost price of these products". "The scarcity of water resources in the Souss is costing us dearly today. To be able to carry out a 200 to 300 meter drilling to pump water, significant amounts need to be mobilized. This increases production costs. Add to that the price of inputs and do the math," he detailed.