The algarroba has increased the price four times and depletes seedlings in nurseries in the heat of unusual demand in which various factors influence, mainly the increase in demand and the decline in supply of producing countries such as Morocco.
The quote reaches 70 cents per kilo “after years of misery” and arouses the interest of many farmers, reports the nut technician of La Unió de Llauradors i Ramaders, Ferran Gregori.
“The algarroba is a very fluctuating crop in prices and takes many years to enter production, so this increase in volume of new plantations can become a double-edged weapon”,warns the technician of La Unió.
“The algarroba has always been considered the poor brother within dry crops, where almonds and olives have much more presence,” Gregori recalls. In fact, ‘virtually all algarroba producers have this crop as the second or third in terms of their business’.
The reality is that the cultivation of the algarroba is going through “a sweet moment”. At the moment, the price set for this week by the Ministry of Agriculture is at a fork between 60 and 65 cents per kilo, but the market quote has reached more than 70 cents per kilo, or even more, detailed by the nut expert.
The Technician of La Unió recalls how years ago the price of the algarroba was “miserable”. “Hopefully 20 cents a kilo was paid”, so the current price means multiplying by four the lowest quotes that have been obtained for this product.
INCREASED DEMAND FOR ALGARROBAS
The increase in demand for algarroba by the food and cosmetics industry is behind a price increase that also coincides with a year in which supply from producing countries such as Morocco has fallen sharply.
“In recent years there has been an increase in the demand for algarrobas to make food for celiacs and vegans from the garrophyn, and the increase also joins the uptick in demand from the cosmetic industry, so at the moment there are many more sectors that require this product beyond animal feed,” he recalls.
The Valencian Community is the region that concentrates most of the production of algarroba in Spain, with about 8,000 tons estimated for this year. Valencia and Castellón are the provinces with the highestproduction, with around 4,000 and 3,500 tons, respectively, while the remaining 500 tons would be concentrated in the province of Alicante.
“From the algarrobas traditionally everything has been used,the algarroba flour, which is mainly used for animal feed, either directly or as a component of compound feed, is also used in human food after a series of treatments such as dehydration, roasting of the product and fine grinding, with which a product of appearance and flavor similar to cocoapowder is obtained”, recalls Ferran Gregori.
The United Union denounces the proposal of the future CAP
The Union considers that the regulatory proposals adopted this week by the Ministers of Agriculture of the European Union (EU), within the Council of the EU, on the future Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), will mean cuts to the incomes of community farmers and farmers. The Union recalls that this agreement is not final and will have to go into negotiations with the position of the European Parliament and the European Commission today. In this regard, La Unió reminds the Minister of Agriculture, Luis Planas, of his commitment to make aid more and more directed at professionals and to set a significant proportion of income linkage to agriculture of at least 25%.
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
