Moroccan Vegetable Prices Soar as Exports and Climate Impact Local Markets

For several weeks now, the price of essential vegetables, such as potatoes or tomatoes, has reached a record. The kilogram is set at 9DH. According to officials and professionals, this surge in fruit and vegetable prices is explained by several factors related to climate change, reports the Arabic daily Assabah. But this price increase could also be justified by the increase in Moroccan exports. Several large farmers have bought tomatoes from small farmers before reselling them for export.

Thus, the export earnings of tomatoes from January to September 2023 exceeded 8.14 billion dirhams compared to more than 7 billion during the same period last year, an increase of 17.91%. Per kilogram, the earnings have logically increased in the same way. They went from 14.84 dirhams during the first nine months of 2022 to 18.61 dirhams, an increase of 3.77 dirhams per kilogram.

In 2022, Spain imported 1.8 billion dirhams worth of vegetables from Morocco. The United Kingdom has tripled its tomato imports since 2018. The Netherlands has quintupled its vegetable imports over the past five years to reach 1.5 billion dirhams in 2022. Germany imported 530 million dirhams worth of vegetables from Morocco in 2022.

Faced with the surge in fruit and vegetable prices, the Moroccan government has announced a number of measures, including limiting the export of certain products, such as tomatoes and legumes, in order to preserve the balance of domestic supply and ensure food security for citizens.