Spanish Berry Farmers Demand Stricter Controls on Moroccan Raspberry Imports

The import by Europe of Moroccan raspberries is causing reactions. The most intransigent come from the Huelva association, representing almost all the raspberry producers and exporters in the province of the same name.

In a press release, this main Spanish producer has noted that since 2010 there has been an "excessive increase" in raspberries coming from Morocco and entering the European market. This situation generates saturation and huge "disruptions on the community markets due to the considerable surplus supply". As a direct consequence, this causes "a drop in product prices, negatively affecting Spanish and European raspberries," details the same press release.

In reality, according to the figures put forward by Freshuelva, Moroccan raspberry exports have grown by 400% over the past five years. From 5,436 tons in 2014, they rose to 21,761 tons in 2018. This has created "significant imbalances on the markets due to saturation," the association notes. The icing on the cake is the remarkable drop in product prices, due to this situation, not to mention a 14.72% loss per kilo of product between January and August 2019 compared to 2018.

Based on all these elements and data that do not favor the European market, the director of Freshuelva, Rafael Domínguez, has expressed the wish that the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, take up the file and bring it before the European Commission. According to him, the objective of such an approach "is not to restrict imports, because it is not possible, but that increased control be applied, at the level of inspection," he told EFE.