After the summer cycle in Tunisia, where drought overwhelmed Tunisian growers and caused the loss of almost half of tomato volumes, things continue to get more complicated in the current autumn cycle.
Selmi Mohameddhia, a Tunisian agronomist, told FreshPlaza, “Following reduced volumes last summer, and consequently attractive prices, many growers turned to tomatoes this autumn. But we’ve had more heat than usual. This accelerated the development of tomatoes in certain regions, and too much volume ended up on the market when there should be 3 weeks between harvests.”
“What’s more, the ban on Tunisian exports to Libya is still in place, and it’s a market that absorbs large quantities of Tunisian tomatoes. As a result, the local market has received too much tomato, and prices have fallen from 1 dinar per kg last summer to 0.1 dinar per kg currently (growers’ prices).” 1 Tunisian dinar = 0.3 EUR.
Drought and acute water stress prompted the Tunisian government to ban the export of certain crops defined as strategic or of primary importance, such as tomatoes, impacting also the Libyan market which relies heavily on Tunisian tomatoes.
Source: Fresh Plaza
