Generic tomatoes

Poor weather conditions continued to hurt Spain's fresh fruit and vegetable export volumes in February, according to the latest industry figures.

According to data from the Directorate General of Customs and Excises, processed by Fepex, February fresh produce exports dropped 5 per cent in volume on a year-on-year basis to 1.1m tonnes, with value up 10 per cent to €1.3bn.

Exports of vegetables fell 7 per cent in volume to 582,798 tonnes, but shot up in value by 19 per cent to €718.6m.

Tomatoes dropped off by 18 per cent in volumes, while most greenhouse vegetables also endured falls, including peppers (-5 per cent) and cucumbers (-10 per cent).

Fruit exports showed more stability, with volumes down 2 per cent to 542,233 tonnes, at a slight value growth of 1 per cent to €586.3m.