Spain: Why are alfalfa exports still stagnant?

Alfalfa farmers and dehydrators do not agree when it comes to setting a price for the treatment and sale of the production, which is destined for Spanish livestock farming and, above all, for the foreign market. Much of the blame falls on this year's capricious weather, with a drought that anticipated a shortage of product and late spring rains that, against the forecast, made production almost like other years. In the end, alfalfa production has been 40% lower than last year, but in any case it has been above what was expected, and the expectations of high prices generated in the farmer have not yet dissipated. As Rafael Rubio, manager of Forages and Proteins, recalls, the Covid pandemic - which had its peak at the beginning of 2020 - significantly altered the functioning of the raw materials markets. “Traditionally, the price of alfalfa was linked to that of barley, a link that for the moment has ceased to be seen,” he points out. In fact, raw materials such as winter cereals ...