Lettuce producers in Spain’s Murcia, Alicante and Almeria regions have suffered “serious losses” as a consequence of the bout of freezing weather that has affected much of Europe over recent days, and there are fears the damage could get worse.
According to Murcia-based export consortium Proexport, severe frosts over the last few nights in south-eastern Spain have led to a “hugely worrying” drop in production, with much of the lettuce crop left damaged by the icy temperatures.
With weather forecasters predicting temperatures could decrease still further during the coming days, dropping to negative figures in Mediterranean areas of Spain, there is concern the damage to the harvest could become yet more serious.
In a statement, Javier Soto, president of Proexport’s lettuce group, said: “Over the last three weeks, production was brought forward due to unseasonably warm temperatures.
'However, after the sudden fall over recent days and the frosts, we are now forecasting a natural gap during the coming weeks that will affect availability of the product.”
“We are worried the cold weather will cause major damage to the lettuce, leading to a significant halt to the development of production sites, as well as volume losses,” added Francisco Morales from Agrícola Aguileña.
Despite the problems, Soto was keen to emphasise that Proexport’s lettuce producers would “continue to work to meet the needs of clients and comply with supply programmes”.
Spain exported 381,027 tonnes of iceberg lettuce in 2010, with Germany and the UK accounting for the main markets.
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