Snowfall in Spain hits stores’ salad

Shoppers on the hunt for salad vegetables have been hit by shortages caused by a snowstorm in Spain.

Supermarkets in the UK have faced difficulties sourcing Spanish lettuces, tomatoes and soft fruit because of Storm Filomena. The storm caused Spain’s heaviest snowfall in half a century, and could also lead to lower crop yields later in the year.

January is a key month for farmers there as around 1.3 million tons of fruit and vegetables are normally exported.

Britain imports 90% of its lettuce and 95% of its tomatoes and soft fruits at this time of year while it is out of season.

The Covid-19 lockdown has also made the situation worse as people are relying on supermarkets, which have different supply chains to restaurants and cafes.

One supermarket supplier said: “When it’s cold, the crop effectively stops growing, so you are seeing smaller crops across Spain. It is a difficult time of year anyway, and then you have got to layer on Covid and Brexit.”

Fepex, Spain’s fresh produce export association, said the freezing conditions may mean lower yields of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, courgettes and aubergines.

It said: “In the field, farmers do not have enough kilos to collect, and not enough product enters the warehouses to supply all orders.”

Four years ago, the price of courgettes in the UK soared after flooding, snow and frost affected crops in parts of Spain. But this time the supply might be so badly affected that even commercial agreements might not be fulfilled.