Potato production in Spain, during 2020, falls by 5.1% to stand at 2.1 million tons

With the data offered by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food on the crop, the 2020 potato campaign in Spain can be considered closed with two sets of conflicting data.

On one hand, the global cultivated area grows by 1%, reaching 67,289 hectares compared to the previous 66,650; While, on the other hand, a significant drop in production can be seen, down 5.1%, from 2,259,320 tons to the current 2,144,523.

Castile and Leon

It remains the main benchmark in the sector, although in the two mentioned variables it presents downward figures this year.

The Castilian-Leonese farmers, in 2020, planted 18,371 hectares of potatoes compared to the previous 19,180. The drop in production is even greater, and falls 10.2% from the 933,664 of the previous season to the current 838,001, largely as a consequence of a climate that has not been ideal either in the sowings or during the vegetative cycle where heatstrokes have occurred that have damaged the volume obtained per hectare, which has been over 40,000 kilos compared to 45 / 50,000 in 2019.

Galicia

On the contrary, there is a significant increase of 15.8% in the cultivated area this season to reach 19,221 hectares, while the advances in production is more moderate with a rise of 5.7%, reaching 393,177 tons collected, according to the data provided by the Ministry of Agriculture.

Andalusia

It is the third region in terms of cultivated surface area that adds in 2020, 9,797 hectares after falling 1.4% in relation to 2019. However, productions have been much better, gaining 7.6% compared to the previous campaign, placing that figure at 331,453 tons compared to the previous 307,966.

Murcia

In contrast, it has seen how the plots destined to this activity in the campaign that is now ending have fallen by 10.2% in such a way that they go from 4,837 hectares to 4,345 in the interannual statistics.

The production has been set, by the MAP, at 149,075 tons, which represents a decrease of 7.5% compared to 2019.

Finally, highlight the situation of two autonomous communities that are around 2,000 hectares dedicated to this crop:

Castilla la Mancha

The Castilian-Manchego potato growers dedicated 8.6% less hectares to this production this year, falling from 2,142 hectares to 1,958, a similar figure under production, the decrease was 8.2%, obtaining 65,932 T.

Valencian Community

It grows 1% from the 2,211 hectares in 2019 to the current 2,234 although production is experiencing a significant decline, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, from 21.1% down from the 75,359 tons in 2019 to the current 56,398.