The price of tomatoes continues to rise after a really difficult season for both producers and traders, especially in the period between December and February. This coincides with a decline in production and tomato calibres.
At present, on the vine and pear tomatoes cost between 0.80 and 0.90 Euro per kilo in auctions, while the Daniela and green Daniela stand between 0.90 and 1.00 Euro per kilo, which are considered very reasonable prices.
Tomato production has slowed down in Almeria with the falling temperatures. At the same time, the acreage is between 20 and 30% smaller at the moment, since many growers have decided to plant watermelons, given the good results achieved in the previous season, as opposed to the dismal returns this year for nearly all tomato varieties. Furthermore, sizes are smaller, with many G tomatoes becoming M and M tomatoes becoming MM, which also means a smaller production volume.
The sector expects an upward trend in prices up until Easter, and this may actually become the best period of the tomato campaign for Almeria, as large retail chains are looking to stock up for the holidays and there is less pressure on prices.
After Easter, prices are expected to fall again, since the Netherlands has just started harvesting tomatoes without artificial light, and Belgium and France are in the same position. The harvest is also kicking off in Eastern European countries like Poland and Romania, and Turkey continues to flood the market because of the Russian veto recently imposed on its exports.
