In the second quarter the volume of fresh fruit and vegetables edged up by 0.1 per cent, whereas the wholesale value decreased by 11.4 per cent compared to last year.
The supply of fresh fruit and vegetables for the second quarter amounted to 12.6 million kilograms, an increase of 0.1 per cent. On the other hand, the wholesale value dropped by 11.4 per cent, from €6.1 million in the second quarter of 2013 to €5.4 million this year.
The volume of fresh vegetables supplied declined by 1.1 per cent to 11.7 million kilograms over the comparative period in 2013. Drops were registered in the supply of Green onions (-44.3 per cent), Tomatoes (-12.8 per cent) and Potatoes (-9.6 per cent). The wholesale value of fresh vegetables registered a decline of 14.2 per cent to €4.2 million in the second quarter this year.
The supply of fresh fruit increased by 18.8 per cent, mainly on account of a rise in the availability of Peaches (+29.4 per cent), Lemons (+26.4 per cent) and Strawberries (+14.0 per cent). Similarly, the wholesale value of fresh fruit increased marginally by 0.2 per cent to €1.2 million (Table 1).
Regional Statistics
Maltese farmers supplied 11.7 million kilograms of fresh fruit and vegetables, yielding €4.9 million. Overall Maltese farmers contributed 92.9 per cent of the total amount of fruit and vegetables on the market (Table 2).
Gozitan farmers supplied the remaining 7.1 per cent, or 0.9 million kilograms, of fresh fruit and vegetables. The wholesale value decreased by 10.8 per cent over the comparative period in 2013 (Table 3).
Quarterly Indices
The quarterly ‘All Items’ fresh fruit price index for the second quarter decreased by 21.71 points (-16.5 per cent) to 109.96 points. In contrast, the fresh fruit volume index increased by 22.33 points (+18.8 per cent) to 141.10 points.
The quarterly ‘All Items’ fresh vegetables price index decreased by 11.97 points (-12.1 per cent), from 98.52 points in the second quarter of 2013 to 86.55 points in the corresponding quarter this year. Additionally, the fresh vegetables volume index decreased by 1.26 points (-1.1 per cent) to 113.25 points in the second quarter of 2014 (Table 5)