ISHS Acta Horticulturae 155: VIII Symposium on Horticultural Economics
PROFITABILITY OF ALMOND ORCHARDS IN SPAIN |
| Author: | A.J. Felipe |
| Abstract:
Almond trees, which come originally from Central Asia, have traditionally been grown in non-irrigated areas of the Middle-East and Mediterranean countries from ancient times until today. In the 18th century, Spanish missionaries introduced this species in California, where it became adapted to the local conditions and was expanded following the Spanish traditional cultural practices. California growers soon discovered that this tree responded favourably to irrigation, fertilizing and improved cultural practices, which resulted in a considerable expansion of almond orchards after World War I. Towards 1963, the United States, which had been an importing country until then, became an almond exporter thanks to the production from California. Table 1, which illustrates the evolution of world almond production since 1960, shows the rapid growth of production in California, the moderate increase in Spain and the stagnation in the remaining producing countries. Today, the U.S.A. (California) produce 60% of the world total figure, over half of which is sent overseas. As a consequence, world-market prices of almonds are virtually determined by U.S. prices. Considering the high yields obtained in California (an average of 1,100 kg/ha vs. 100 kg/ha in Spain in 1982), one can easily understand why Spanish exporters, faced to international prices set by the U.S. production, can hardly meet production costs. This paper does not attempt to present a detailed evaluation of almond production costs in Spain, but on the basis of actual average cost-data tries to demonstrate that our present situation is unfavourable. | |
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