bananas

Spain's horticultural imports grew by 13 per cent in volume and 9 per cent in value to 217,975 tonnes and €146.9m respectively in September, making it the month of the greatest import increase in 2014.

September's growth was mainly down to fruit, with a 25 per cent volume increase to 144,154 tonnes, and a 15 per cent jump in value to €113.8m, driven by bananas, pineapples, kiwifruit and apples, Fepex reported.

Vegetable imports actually dropped 5 per cent in volume to 73,821 tonnes, and 8 per cent in value to €33.1m, with potatoes in particular falling.

For the January-September months, imports grew 4 per cent in volume over the same period last year, while value remained stable at €1.2bn.