Spanish stonefruit

Stonefruit was one of Spain's leading export categories in 2017

Spain saw small growth in fresh fruit and vegetable exports during the January-November period of 2017, according to the latest data from the General Directorate of Customs.

Exports for the 11-month period climbed 1 per cent on volume to 11.2m tonnes and 2.6 per vent in value to €11.38bn, Fepex noted.

Fruit exports climbed in both volume and value terms, up 4.5 per cent to 6.7m tonnes and 2.4 per cent to €6.75bn respectively, driven in particular by citrus and stonefruit.

Vegetable exports, meanwhile, dropped 3.4 per cent in volume year-on-year to 4.5m tonnes, while rising 3 per cent in value to €4.6bn.

According to Fepex, tomatoes, lettuces and peppers were the most-exported vegetables, followed by cucumbers and cabbages.

Fresh produce imports into the Spanish market grew once more for the January-October period of 2017 – a trend described as 'worrying' by Fepex.

Total imports grew 5.6 per cent in volume to 2.7m tonnes and 9 per cent in value to €2.3bn.

Leading import vegetables included potatoes, tomatoes and green beans, while top fruit imports were bananas, kiwifruit, apples and pineapples.