Katherine Brook
ANDALUCIA has exported more agricultural goods this year than ever before with sales reaching €5.9 billion in the first five months.
The southern peninsula now leads the agri-food market in Spain, contributing almost one in four euros (24.1%) to national sales (€24.6 billion).
One of the biggest reasons for the 4.9% growth is down to a huge increase of export companies, which has grown by 20.2% year-on-year, taking the total number of export markets to 3,125, according to Extenda-Andalucia Exportation and Foreign Investment (Extenda).
Europe tops the chart as the main destination for Andalusian agriculture exports. However, Asian destinations are also thriving, with China the third fastest growing market (+18.9%) in this period (January-May).
It comes as no surprise that vegetables and fruit were the biggest drivers for the market, with sales of €1.8 billion and €1.6 billion respectively. Followed by olive oil at €1 billion.
That said, meat, fish and horticulture were the sectors that grew the most in the five-month period, with plants and flowers topping the chart, at 35%.
Arturo Bernal, CEO of Extenda, expressed how ‘significant’ the growth is during a ‘difficult 2020’.
“Andalucia has repeatedly reached figures that exceed all previous records, an incredible achievement, especially if we take into account the difficulties of this year,” he added.
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