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Huelva strawberry, a sector prepared for the future
Spain
Thursday 20 March 2008
Huelva and strawberry compose an inseparable couple. We have a sector which, after 30 years of life, has strengthened based on its professionalism and innovation, but which still needs the development of a joint work at a production and commercial level. Therefore, VI International Symposium on Strawberry is a meeting point and unique scenario to acquire the knowledge Huelva needs.
World strawberry production has undergone a fast growth within the last years, going from 2.776.059 tons in 1996 up to 4.081.661 tons in 2006. The province of Huelva is the most representative instance of this increase since it grew from 6.500 tons a year in the middle 60s to 254.968 tons in 2007 (source: Freshuelva). According to the Ministry for Agriculture Fishing and Food (MAPA), strawberry production in Huelva until 1976 was restricted to the municipalities of Palos, Moguer and Lucena del Puerto; however, from 2000 on, this cultivation spread across Huelva western coast. Thus, at present there are four areas which feature strawberry production: Entorno de Doñana, Western Coast, Western Andévalo and Condado de Huelva, with a total area of 6.230 hectares (2008 campaign).
However, it is true that cultivated area and, therefore, production of strawberry have decreased in Huelva in the last years and in order to understand this situation we must, on one hand, analyse the problems which resulted in loss of profitability and therefore giving up cultivation or diversification towards another one; on the other hand, we must take into account the renewal in production, which turned to the search for quality at the expense of volume.
World strawberry production has undergone a fast growth within the last years, going from 2.776.059 tons in 1996 up to 4.081.661 tons in 2006. The province of Huelva is the most representative instance of this increase since it grew from 6.500 tons a year in the middle 60s to 254.968 tons in 2007 (source: Freshuelva). According to the Ministry for Agriculture Fishing and Food (MAPA), strawberry production in Huelva until 1976 was restricted to the municipalities of Palos, Moguer and Lucena del Puerto; however, from 2000 on, this cultivation spread across Huelva western coast. Thus, at present there are four areas which feature strawberry production: Entorno de Doñana, Western Coast, Western Andévalo and Condado de Huelva, with a total area of 6.230 hectares (2008 campaign).
However, it is true that cultivated area and, therefore, production of strawberry have decreased in Huelva in the last years and in order to understand this situation we must, on one hand, analyse the problems which resulted in loss of profitability and therefore giving up cultivation or diversification towards another one; on the other hand, we must take into account the renewal in production, which turned to the search for quality at the expense of volume.
