Picotas primed for positive season

Consumers will have to wait a little longer this year for the highly anticipated start to Spain’s Picota cherry campaign. Harvesting is running around two weeks behind normal due to the cool and rainy spring, but those same conditions have been optimal for fruit development and Mother Nature is set to deliver an abundant crop of good quality cherries in 2025.

“We’ve always got one eye on the sky,” says Mónica Tierno, chief executive of Agrupación de Cooperativas del Valle del Jerte (ACVJ), a second-tier cooperative that represents some 2,500 small producers in the area. “But barring any unforeseen climatic events, we hope it will be a decent season.”

Tierno has good reason to be guarded. The past two seasons saw heavy rains pound the valley just as the fruit was about to be harvested, causing the already ripe cherries to crack and rot and destroying the hopes of farmers along with a significant part of the crop.

This year, it is Eastern European producers that have borne the brunt of the inclement weather. Severe spring frosts have led to sharp decline in production in Turkey – Europe’s biggest producer – along with Greece, Poland, Hungary and Ukraine. The resulting shortage has pushed prices up to very respectable levels and while they will undoubtedly come down as volumes start to build, hopes are high among the valley’s producers that they are in for a good campaign.

“The only slight downside is that the harvest is running two weeks late. This is the latest season we’ve had in ten years,” says Tierno. “But so far so good. Quality is there, volume is there. We are starting slowly and we’re expecting volumes to peak in late June. And the good news is that we’ll have cherries available until August.”

Cherries are the lifeblood of the Jerte Valley. Almost everyone is involved in their production – either directly or through their work in packhouses, logistics and other supporting industries. Located in Extremadura in Western Spain, the valley’s distinctive terraced landscape is home to around two million cherry trees planted between 400 and 1,200 metres above sea level.

ACVJ is the region’s – and Europe’s – biggest cherry marketer, producing around 18,000 tonnes a year. Around 30 per cent of its output is Picota, a unique variety grown exclusively in the Jerte Valley. Characterised by its smaller size, deep red colour and crunchy bite, it is hand-picked at the optimum point of ripeness, guaranteeing that each cherry packs a punch when it comes to flavour and sweetness. It is also the only variety to be sold stalkless, as the fruit naturally detaches from its stalk when it is harvested, a process that also ensures a longer shelf-life.

Around 50 per cent of the Picota crop is sold domestically and the rest is exported, principally to the UK and Scandinavian markets. According to Tierno, the cherries are sorted, packed and shipped within 24 hours of entering the packhouse and can be on UK supermarket shelves two days later, guaranteeing maximum freshness.

“There’s a reason why it Picota is known as the queen of cherries. Even though they are smaller than a normal cherry on average, they are very crunchy and sweet – the perfect summer snack,” she says.

Thanks to years of promotional campaigns, Picotas are highly valued by discerning cherry consumers in the UK and efforts are now underway to make similar inroads in the Scandinavian market. Further afield, much excitement has been generated by the recent opening of the Chinese market to Spanish cherries. However, Tierno is ambivalent about the opportunity this presents for Picotas.

“On the plus side, they travel well because of their longer shelf-life, but their smaller size may make them less appealing for Chinese consumers,” she says. “In any case, we’re still waiting for final approval of the new phytosanitary protocol from the Chinese authorities so everything is on hold right now.”

The Picota harvest season is short and intense, typically lasting just a few weeks. But maintaining the orchards and preparing the trees is a year-round labour of love, according to farmer Alberto López. He has almost dozen weather apps on his mobile that he monitors constantly to know when best to prune, treat or harvest his trees. “Each app is based on a slightly different forecasting model – if they all say rain, then I know there’s a 100 per cent certainty that it will rain, but if only some do then it’s not guaranteed,” he says.

Together with is wife, Carolina, López farms a few hectares of cherries, including Picotas, that have been passed down through the family for generations. Things have changed from when he was a child and the entire extended family would be required to pitch in at harvest time. With people having fewer children and the younger generation moving away from the valley, he now has to employ seasonal workers to help him pick the crop.

López says a properly managed orchard should yield 10,000kg per hectare in a good year. “Being a farmer means knowing about meteorology, it means knowing about agricultural engineering, it means having empathy with your workers, but more than anything it requires patience, a lot of patience,” he says. “Ultimately, you get out what you put in.”

Being part of ACVJ ensures that farmers like López receive the best return possible for their fruit. “Our size and structure is our biggest strength,” says the cooperative’s president, Jose Antonio Tierno. “It allows us to negotiate more favourable prices for our growers and to innovate to stay ahead of market trends.”

The company invests millions of euros each year to improve its to processes. Most recently the focus has been on installing state-of-the-art sorting and grading machines to allow for faster, more precise and cost-effective packing that improves the quality and consistency of its offer. The goal, says Tierno, is to deliver better sizing and quality for the customer and better returns for growers.

A key plank of this strategy is ACVJ’s genetic improvement programme. According to José Antonio Tierno, climate change is making life increasingly challenging for producers – with the warmer winters, irregular rainfall patterns and scorching summers all taking their toll on production. He says the development of new varieties that require fewer cold hours is a priority for the business, along with introducing new cultivars that extend its marketing window at the beginning and end of the season.

Recently, the Regulatory Council of the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) Cereza del Jerte (Jerte Cherries) announced that it would certify three new cherry varieties from this season: Van, Lapins, and Burlat. This will add an extra 10,000 to 12,000 tonnes of production to the quality label, complementing the PDO’s flagship Picota season and extending its campaign from April to August.

Tierno believes any attempt to reinforce the quality and authenticity of the valley’s cherries is the right way to go. As global competition intensifies and price pressures mount, ACVJ’s commitment to quality stands as both a challenge and a defining strength. By focusing on superior flavour, sustainable practices, and meticulous cultivation, it aims to carve out a distinct niche in the premium segment of the cherry market.

“We can’t compete on price, so we need to differentiate ourselves on quality,” Tierno says. “We have a truly unique product that is grown in harmony with nature and sustains a whole way of life here in the valley. This is a great story and one that we need to keep on sharing.”