While the pepper season started with a considerable delay for early peppers, these ended up overlapping with midseason pepper crops, which arrived earlier due to the mild temperatures. This caused the market to become flooded with peppers in November and prices to plummet until late December.
With the New Year, however, pepper prices have been rising due to supply shortages, especially in reds, yellows and oranges, and the situation is expected to remain similar until the end of the season, given that the days are shorter and colder. The price of short yellow peppers, the most sought after now, have gone in just one week from € 0.80 to € 1.46 per kilo. More stable is the price of short green peppers, which stand at an average of 83 cents per kilo. Red peppers have reached almost € 1.00 per kilo. Long green peppers cost an average of € 0.80 per kilo, while long red peppers, after a slight drop, stand at € 0.95 per kilo. Italian green peppers also remain stable, with € 0.90 per kilo.
Almeria cucumber prices still stagnant
Meanwhile, cucumber prices are still stagnant due to oversupply of midseason cucumbers and the Almeria variety does not exceed 28 cents per kilo, while the Spanish variety remains at an average of 38 cents and the French exceeds 60 cents per kilo at auction.
Courgettes, affected by the New Delhi virus
Courgette prices are also recovering due to the drop in production volumes. The unusually high temperatures in autumn and winter have facilitated the proliferation of whiteflies, making it difficult to control the dreaded New Delhi virus. Many growers have been forced to uproot their crops.
Furthermore, competition from Morocco has become more noticeable this year, as it has increased its acreage.
At present, the price of thin courgettes stands at € 0.84 per kilo, about twice as much as a week earlier. The price of thick courgettes have gone from 0.35 to 0.65 € per kilo in a week.
Irregular prices for aubergines
Aubergines have registered a greater price oscillation. Black aubergines currently cost 0.42 € per kilo, while white aubergines stand at 0.91 € per kilo.
