Spain: Drought forces tropical fruit to broaden its horizons

The most severe and prolonged drought on record has caused avocado and mango production in Axarquía district (Málaga province) to plummet. Faced with this difficult situation, which is unlikely to be resolved in the short term due to the lack of water infrastructure, operators are intensifying their search for new commercial alliances and production areas that will enable sustainable category growth in the coming years. Major companies are looking to purchase new farms in areas where water supply is assured and to sign agreements with new partners committed to the future of tropical crops, even in provinces traditionally specialized in other crops. Supply efforts are extending beyond national borders, to make up for the shortfall in local production and to provide homogeneous fruit of the highest quality throughout the year. Two important companies, Trops and Grupo Reyes Gutiérrez (Fig. 1), have set their sights on Portugal and the Spanish province of Cádiz. Grupo Alcoaxarquía is ...