Inspite of the economic devastations caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, Morocco upped the ante on its exports of fruits and vegetables by supplying of one-third of Spain’s produce imports in the first half of 2020. And this amounted to €548 million during the first half of 2020, up 18% compared to the same period last year. This number represents almost half  (about 47% )of Spain’s total imports from third countries, statistics from FPEX show.

The website said Morocco reinforced itself as a “leading supplier to the Spanish market” for fruits and vegetables. Morocco supplied 33% of Spain’s fruit and vegetable purchases in the first half of the year. The imports amounted to 949,155 tonnes.

Data from the Customs and Special Taxes Department quoted by FEPEX detail the evolution of Spain’s imports of fruit and vegetables from Morocco. Spain’s imports of Moroccan produce increased from 214,215 tons in the first half of 2016 to 358,329 tons in the first half of 2020, a growth of 67%. The value of the goods increased from €312.3 million to €548 million during the same period, a 75% rise.

Between 2015 and 2019, Spain’s imports of fruit and vegetables from Morocco increased by 82% from 236,775 tons to 430,299 tons. The value of the purchases has increased by 94%,  from €352 million to €682 million euros.

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FEPEX said that the EU’s imports of Moroccan produce amount to 1.4 million tons of fruit and vegetables, representing an increase of 40% over the past five years and 4% since 2018. The value of purchases from Morocco increased to €1,805 million, up 3% from 2018 and 42% from 2015.

The Exchange Office’s 2019 annual foreign trade report showed in June that Spain remained Morocco’s top economic partner last year. It accounted for 28.4% of the country’s total foreign trade with the EU.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry