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Tomatoes in portugal
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A new report by the Association of Tomato Producers has revealed that this year's tomato production in Portugal will represent the second largest level of productivity in the world, behind only California. The numbers of 92 tons per hectare are in themselves impressive and go to demonstrate the importance of Portugal in the agricultural economy of the world.
There are however some threats to the rosy picture that is being painted by these numbers, with changes to agricultural policies in Europe possibly creating the threat of less funding for farmers in Portugal, which will have an effect on overall production levels.
Some commentators are predicting that there could be a drop in funding levels from €2100 per hectare under cultivation to €179 per hectare under cultivation, and that as a result of these changes it is possible that the overall amount of land that is given over to tomato cultivation in Portugal could drop by as much as 40% over the next few years.
As you might expect the Association of Tomato Producers are actively campaigning against the changes and are attempting to highlight the potential problems that any changes may cause. They are also attempting to draw parallels between the changes themselves and other parts of the Portuguese economy, with the Secretary General of the Association of Tomato Producers in Portugal, Miguel Cambezes highlighting some of the potential problems when he was interviewed about the proposed changes:
“If the proposal for the new PAC is approved as it is, I fear that many producers that will not grow the crop and we could see a reduction of up to 40 percent, which could put the viability of the agricultural businesses at risk. Such a reduction could even put at risk the viability of some industrial units in Portugal.”
One positive piece of good news though is that last year's tomato crop was in fact much better than had been anticipated, and so while there are rumblings of doom and gloom on the horizon. The actual reality is that while Portugal may be facing tough economic times (along with the rest of Europe) that there are still reasons to be cheerful, and to feel optimistic about certain areas of the agricultural sector in Portugal.
The raw numbers in terms of how the tomatoes benefit the economy are quite startling. In many industries it is normal for most of the production to be produced domestically, and so figures relating to exports are often skewed downwards, rather than really helping to propel the economy forwards.
With tomato production in Portugal however this is not the case, because fully 95% of the processed tomatoes that are grown and produced in the sunny fields of Portugal end up being exported.
In pure financial terms this is an industry that is worth over €250 million to the Portuguese economy and is one of relatively few big success stories during these years of economic recession. It is therefore very understandable that the Association of Tomato Producers is concerned to hammer home to the authorities the need to fight their corner in any further discussions with Europe.
It is also important to realize that the financial impact of the loss of 40% of tomatoes under cultivation could also have a big effect on jobs in Portugal, because it is estimated that some 6,500 jobs are derived from the sector. This is perhaps not surprising when you crunch the numbers and realize that Portugal is the fifth largest exporter of tomatoes worldwide and exports directly to 42 different countries according to the Industrial Association who monitor these figures.
The Government of Portugal is however not blind to potential lost revenue and job losses in a time of economic austerity, and Agriculture Minister Assunção Cristashas has promised to both fight any proposed reductions to agricultural budgets from Europe and allocate even more money to the €60 million that they estimate they have pumped in to the tomato growing sector in Portugal in the last ten years.
It remains to be seen how these changes will impact tomato growing in Portugal, but for now at least California will have to stay a little nervous of Portugal's progress in this area!
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