Italian Watermelon Imports From Morocco Decline as Domestic Production Increase

Italian watermelon imports from Morocco are declining due to the availability of quality domestic supply. Sicilian watermelons lead the market due to their high sugar content and flavour. Despite the demand for locally produced watermelons, imports from Greece are also increasing due to lower domestic production compared to previous years. In August 2022 Italian production amounted to 480,000MT on an area of 13,000 cultivated hectares against the 16,000 hectares planted in 2020.

The area under cultivation of mini and midi watermelons have also increased which reduces the unit production. Furthermore, hailstorms and prolonged drought affected the main productive areas, which are Lazio, Apulia, Sicily, and Lombardy further affecting production. In W34 watermelons are trading at USD 0.46/kg at wholesale while the average retail price is USD 0,65/kg.