Spain was filled with Egyptian oranges, Spanish ones remain unclaimed

Anger prevails in the ranks of Spanish citrus producers because the increased imports of oranges, mainly from Egypt, have resulted in a virtual "trade freeze" for Spanish oranges in their country. Increased imports of oranges from third countries have brought an increase in supply and a decrease in demand, with the result that producer prices are at such low levels that they do not cover production costs. The president of the Association of Young Farmers (Asaja) of Córdoba, Ignacio Fernández de Mesa, lamented “the lack of demand for oranges from his province due to imports from third countries, which causes stagnation in the market. The reason for the low demand is that many oranges come from countries outside the European Union, mainly from Egypt. This results in prices falling for Spanish oranges to levels that do not even cover production costs. On the contrary, Egypt benefits from reduced production costs and has a competitive advantage, since it has lower labor costs and ...