Clemenules producers are optimistic, as the prices obtained in the first sales operations, a month before the harvest starts, were good. According to La Lonja de Valencia, the prices achieved in the first commercial deals on September 19 ranged between 0.30 and 0.37 euro per kilo. In fact, there were some operations in which prices even reached 0.45 euro.
"The prices are not bad at all. I hope they stay that way throughout the campaign, but we'll have to see what happens in the coming weeks," stated Roberto Vicent, responsible for the sector of the Valencian Association of Farmers (AVA-Asaja) in Plana Baixa.
Prices might be good but the sector is, once again, facing wild production costs. Last year the price of electricity, diesel, and fertilizers broke all records and this year the situation is even worse.
La Unió de Llauradors i Ramaders estimates that -taking into account the current expenses- producers need to sell their Clemenules from 0.30 to 0.32 euro to cover production costs. "However, we work to earn some money. So honestly, we won't be profitable if we sell them for less than 0.36 euro and produce more than 3,000 kilos per hectare," stated Carles Peris, secretary general of la Unió.
Meanwhile, Navelina prices range from 0.18 to 0.24 euro per kilo. "Selling oranges below 0.32 is losing money because it doesn't allow producers to cover their costs, which increased by more than 40% in the last year," AVA-Asaja stated, and demanded the government rigorously comply with the law of the food chain that prohibits selling at a loss. To this end, it demands a public body publishes the actual production costs and, based on these official data, it requests the Food Control and Information Agency (AICA) to open an ex officio investigation into any sales contract that establishes a price that is at least 10% below the costs.
Source: elperiodicomediterraneo.com