The China-US trade war triggers the sale of Spanish alfalfa

Published 2020년 7월 17일

Tridge summary

In 2019, green alfalfa accounted for 57% of Spain's forage production, with major cultivation areas in Aragon, Catalonia, and Castilla y León. The country's forage sector, which employs approximately 4,000 people, is facing challenges such as reduced production in the 2018/19 season due to weather conditions, and increased competition from cereals and oilseeds due to their lower prices. However, national demand for alfalfa is low due to the dairy crisis, despite its quality. The sector has found a glimmer of hope in increased exports, which have grown from 30% of production in 2003/04 to 81% in 2019/20, primarily to China. Spain's unique approach to dehydrating alfalfa has earned it a niche in the international market, despite higher production costs. Both the US and Spain are struggling with challenges in the forage sector, including competition with cereals and economic losses, but are also finding success through quality and pricing in export markets.

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Original content

María José Maluenda. Agricultural technical engineer The production of green alfalfa represents 57% of the forage production in Spain in 2019. The surface of the main forages of 109.7 thousand ha of fodder corn, 156.8 thousand ha of vetch and 257 , 8 thousand ha of alfalfa, would reach a production of 4,819.2 thousand t of corn, 1,429 thousand t of vetch and 9,431.2 thousand t of alfalfa. Alfalfa cultivation is spread throughout Spain, the most representative autonomous communities being: Aragon (55%), Catalonia (22%) and Castilla y León (11%), and to a lesser extent the communities of Navarra, Andalusia and Castilla- La Mancha. 50% of alfalfa production is dehydrated in the 74 plants spread throughout Spain, and the other half is consumed as sun-dried fodder for national consumption. 77% of the production of dehydrated forage occurs in bale forms and the rest in pellets. The production of dehydrated forages in Spain in 2018/19 was the lowest in recent years, due to the smaller ...

Source: Campo