The province of Granada in the south of Spain is known for its cultivation of green asparagus. In 2015 asparagus was grown here in an acreage of around 6,145 hectares, 4,045 hectares of which can be irrigated.
This year the province hopes to harvest 34.5 million kilos of asparagus, representing 65 million euros.
Espárrago de Granada is a cooperative specialising in the sale of the green asparagus supplied by the affiliated growers’ cooperatives Agrolachar SCA, Espafron SCA, Agromesia SCA and Vegachauchina SCA. This year Espalorgiua SCA also joined the cooperative.
José Antonio Gómez Aguilera: chairman of Espárrago de Granada and Espafron SCA
Asparagus is grown on a very small scale in Granada; the aforementioned five growers’ cooperatives represent around 600 affiliated growers with an acreage of 550 hectares.
Esparrago de Granada SCA is the only cooperative in the province focusing on the sale of green asparagus. Its chairman José Antonio Gómez Aguilera says that the production of asparagus in Granada usually starts in the second half of March and continues until mid-June. But this year, the asparagus plants started producing in January and February already because of the relatively warm winter months – a highly unusual situation. The temperatures dropped in early March and there was frost at night, which killed all the asparagus shoots, slowing down the production process and causing major losses.
Asparagus is grown mostly in light clay soils, which may contain a few stones. In the valley of Granada the asparagus is usually irrigated using the corrugation method, with the water flowing between the rows of plants. Ever more use is being made of drip irrigation. This system is now being used for almost 15% of the asparagus plants.
The asparagus is harvested by hand, partly because of the small scale on which it is grown and the availability of sufficient people to do the harvesting. So, unlike in other countries, no self-propelled harvesters are used here. The asparagus is bundled in the field and then transported to the cooperative where it is sorted and packed ready for sale.
Juan Sánchez Castro, commercial director of Espárrago de Granada SCA, says that the product is exported mostly to northern and central Europe. Important markets are Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France and Italy.
The Espárrago de Granada cooperative is growing tremendously: every year asparagus is planted in more than 100 hectares, which amounts to around two million plants. According to José Antonio Gómez Aguilera, the cooperative’s chairman, the sales organisation expects to double its production volume in four years’ time.
Earliness, production and tight tips are important criteria in choosing a green asparagus variety. Thanks to its stable production and good quality, Limgroup’s variety Sunlim is acquiring an ever larger place in Granada’s asparagus acreage. Limgroup has been been active in Spain for many years, testing new asparagus hybrids. This we do by working directly together with local growers and cooperatives that are members of Espárrago de Granada SCA.
