Vega Alta stone fruit growers estimate that this year’s total production, if there are no last-minute incidents, could be similar to that of 2022, when they managed to market almost 300,000 tons in Vega Alta alone and slightly less than 400,000 throughout the Region, as confirmed to LA VERDAD by the president of Coag Iniciativa Rural, Miguel Ángel Piñera.
Piñera explained that the evolution detected in the fruit trees “is the same as last year, since the frosts that took place in the month of February and that affected the extra early fruit were also recorded in 2022, which makes us think that we are going to be more or less the same.
Regarding the delay of almost 20 days in the harvest due to the low temperatures in February and the first half of March, from Coag they insisted that “this situation should not affect the quality of the final production, since the trees are readjusting during the process, although the delay will always be there«». Piñera pointed out that “we are observing very fast flowering on many farms, but not for a week, but for two or three days, which is the time it takes the trees to sprout their leaves. Of course, they are things that we had not seen before, but we will have to get used to it ».
By variety, the worst part could be taken again this year by apricots. “We are seeing that there is little production, although we would not know how to specifically specify why it is happening,” said Piñera. As for nectarines and red peach, “everything is normal, with no fungus or moisture problems, so we believe that there will be an acceptable production,” said the president of Coag. Regarding mid-season fruit, he pointed out that “it is still too early to know how the campaign will go, but we believe that there will be no problem unless a hail cloud arrives that could reduce production.”
On the other hand, Miguel Ángel Piñera said that there is an increase in the planting of Romea and Baby Gold 6 varieties. Both were included in the IGP Peach de Cieza denomination. “We are observing that during this past winter many trees have been grafted with these two varieties, which are the highest quality and best adapted to the terrain.” For this farmer, “it is something very positive for the expectations of our fruit, since this badge gives it more fame.”
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