Morocco looks to benefit from Spain's misfortune

Moroccan citrus growers are reaping the benefits of Spain’s recent adverse weather conditions with some markets looking to Morocco for reliable supply, exporters at Sifel told FPJ.

Fatiha Charrat, sales and marketing manager for major citrus grower and supplier, Delassus, said recent frosts in Spain were providing Morocco with a new stream of interest: “Last year we didn’t have any customers visit us, and now I’ve had two visitors from the UK. They are looking for citrus due to the problems in Spain where many varieties are finishing early - easy peelers and Navel will finish by the end of December. The problem is that we have a certain volume of citrus and we can’t please everyone,” she said.

However, Jamal Merzouk, export manager at Les Domaines, said: “Spain has had some problems - but not a lot. They produce two million tonnes so losing 10 per cent is not a big problem for them.”