Articles
SITUATION OF THE PRODUCTION, RESEARCH AND ECONOMICS OF THE POMEGRANATE INDUSTRY IN SPAIN
Article number
1089_45
Pages
345 – 349
Language
English
Abstract
This paper reviews the current situation of the pomegranate industry in Spain, one of the most important producers and exporters of this fruit in the Mediterranean Basin.
Introduced into Spain by the Phoenicians, widespread farming of pomegranates was developed several centuries later by the Arabs.
Commercial orchards have been traditionally concentrated in the southeast, but recently cultivation has spread to other areas, mainly in the East and South of the Iberian Peninsula.
According to the latest formal statistics (2012), the total area of pomegranate orchards is 3,344 ha and the total production exceeds 45,000 t, of which more than 60% are exported.
Estimating new plantations, the production of pomegranates for 2014 may increase by as much as 15-20%. In spite of various pomegranate cultivars grown and others recently introduced, sweet and soft-seeded Mollar de Elche and Valenciana are the main cultivars/populations.
Spanish research activities in progress on pomegranate are focused on breeding, preharvest and postharvest techniques in order to improving quality, and on industrial production of juices and extracts.
An analysis of the costs of pomegranate production at representative farms in Alicante province has been performed in order to identify more direct inputs into the economy of the farms which can contribute to their viability and continuity in the medium term.
Labor is the largest cost (over 32% of total costs), mainly due to the operations of pruning, thinning and harvesting.
The irrigation water cost is over 15% due to the high average price of this natural resource in the area.
Introduced into Spain by the Phoenicians, widespread farming of pomegranates was developed several centuries later by the Arabs.
Commercial orchards have been traditionally concentrated in the southeast, but recently cultivation has spread to other areas, mainly in the East and South of the Iberian Peninsula.
According to the latest formal statistics (2012), the total area of pomegranate orchards is 3,344 ha and the total production exceeds 45,000 t, of which more than 60% are exported.
Estimating new plantations, the production of pomegranates for 2014 may increase by as much as 15-20%. In spite of various pomegranate cultivars grown and others recently introduced, sweet and soft-seeded Mollar de Elche and Valenciana are the main cultivars/populations.
Spanish research activities in progress on pomegranate are focused on breeding, preharvest and postharvest techniques in order to improving quality, and on industrial production of juices and extracts.
An analysis of the costs of pomegranate production at representative farms in Alicante province has been performed in order to identify more direct inputs into the economy of the farms which can contribute to their viability and continuity in the medium term.
Labor is the largest cost (over 32% of total costs), mainly due to the operations of pruning, thinning and harvesting.
The irrigation water cost is over 15% due to the high average price of this natural resource in the area.
Authors
J. Bartual, M.A. Fernandez-Zamudio, M.D. De-Miguel
Keywords
Punica granatum, ‘Mollar de Elche’, variable costs
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