Bumper tomato exports
The amount of tomatoes processed and exported is increasing rapidly and within a few years may overtake potatoes as Malta's most important crop.Tomatoes already constitute the largest crop in Malta in terms of volume, with an estimated harvest this...
The amount of tomatoes processed and exported is increasing rapidly and within a few years may overtake potatoes as Malta's most important crop.
Tomatoes already constitute the largest crop in Malta in terms of volume, with an estimated harvest this year of 12,000 tons for processing and 5,000 tons for the fresh market.
This year, around 3,500 tons will be processed, up from 3,000 tons last year, compared to 5,000 tons of potatoes.
Although there are a number of processors, only Magro Bros exports, buying up 80 per cent of the available crop. Three of the four producers' organisations specialise in crops for processing, representing 360 growers.
"The number of growers remains fairly stable but a very encouraging sign is that a whole new breed of younger farmers are taking over from the older generation," Magro Bros managing director John Magro said.
"I was recently talking to a 32-year-old grower, who has 35 hectares. I remember talking to growers at the Don Bosco Oratory 30 years ago and all the 600 growers at the time were over 60 years old!
"Apart from the fact that the new ones are very open to the latest technology, they also use updated management techniques which enables them to be much more professional," Mr Magro said.
He sees this as an important trend.
"If we know that the supply will be there, we will continue to invest. And if they know that the demand will be there, they will continue to mechanise and invest too."
In fact, Magro's export strategy resulted in a 25 per cent year-on-year increase since 1996.
These "new" farmers do not have land of their own and tend to contract tenanted land for a year at a time, enabling them to ensure crop rotation. "Land-owners do not want to sell and the tenants do not want to give up their rights even if they are not actively using the land. So this way, more land is being used - but in rotation," he explained. The government has been working for the past years with the agricultural institute in Bari to improve the harvest.
This had two main aims: improving the actual yield and increasing the natural sugar levels, known as the Brix.
The yield in Malta - at 34 tons per hectare - used to be a fraction of that in Europe (68 tons per hectare). By 2006, it had increased by 46 per cent to an average of 50 tons, although some farmers have exceeded 80 tons.
"This shows that it is possible. The results are there to see," Mr Magro said.
Apart from the quantity, emphasis was also put on quality - not on taste, as the Maltese tomato is legendary! - but on the natural sugar.
"Think of the Brix as being the part of the tomato that is not water. The higher the Brix, the fewer tomatoes you need to get the same amount of kunserva," he explained.
Kunserva is no longer Magro's main export. The increase in sauce production has extended the economic impact to growers of other produce. Magro requires three tons of basil, for example, and is already having problems finding enough onions. It also buys increasing quantities of figs; this year, he believes that they will be lucky to find half the four tons they bought last year because of a bad harvest. As the range of sauces grows and grows, so do the ingredients they require: carrots, capers, meat.
"We always try to buy locally. We get as much meat as possible from local EU-standard plants.
"We are encouraging farmers to talk to us about what we need so that they can grow the right type of product. It is not enough to grow onions: We need particular sizes for pickling, for example.
In the meantime, the tomato harvest is in full swing with 300 tons a day turning up at the Magro plant in Xewkija. During the eight-week harvest, the plant works round the clock, six days a week.
"We have 15 lorries a day crossing the channel," he said proudly.
Tomatoes already constitute the largest crop in Malta in terms of volume, with an estimated harvest this year of 12,000 tons for processing and 5,000 tons for the fresh market.
This year, around 3,500 tons will be processed, up from 3,000 tons last year, compared to 5,000 tons of potatoes.
Although there are a number of processors, only Magro Bros exports, buying up 80 per cent of the available crop. Three of the four producers' organisations specialise in crops for processing, representing 360 growers.
"The number of growers remains fairly stable but a very encouraging sign is that a whole new breed of younger farmers are taking over from the older generation," Magro Bros managing director John Magro said.
"I was recently talking to a 32-year-old grower, who has 35 hectares. I remember talking to growers at the Don Bosco Oratory 30 years ago and all the 600 growers at the time were over 60 years old!
"Apart from the fact that the new ones are very open to the latest technology, they also use updated management techniques which enables them to be much more professional," Mr Magro said.
He sees this as an important trend.
"If we know that the supply will be there, we will continue to invest. And if they know that the demand will be there, they will continue to mechanise and invest too."
In fact, Magro's export strategy resulted in a 25 per cent year-on-year increase since 1996.
These "new" farmers do not have land of their own and tend to contract tenanted land for a year at a time, enabling them to ensure crop rotation. "Land-owners do not want to sell and the tenants do not want to give up their rights even if they are not actively using the land. So this way, more land is being used - but in rotation," he explained. The government has been working for the past years with the agricultural institute in Bari to improve the harvest.
This had two main aims: improving the actual yield and increasing the natural sugar levels, known as the Brix.
The yield in Malta - at 34 tons per hectare - used to be a fraction of that in Europe (68 tons per hectare). By 2006, it had increased by 46 per cent to an average of 50 tons, although some farmers have exceeded 80 tons.
"This shows that it is possible. The results are there to see," Mr Magro said.
Apart from the quantity, emphasis was also put on quality - not on taste, as the Maltese tomato is legendary! - but on the natural sugar.
"Think of the Brix as being the part of the tomato that is not water. The higher the Brix, the fewer tomatoes you need to get the same amount of kunserva," he explained.
Kunserva is no longer Magro's main export. The increase in sauce production has extended the economic impact to growers of other produce. Magro requires three tons of basil, for example, and is already having problems finding enough onions. It also buys increasing quantities of figs; this year, he believes that they will be lucky to find half the four tons they bought last year because of a bad harvest. As the range of sauces grows and grows, so do the ingredients they require: carrots, capers, meat.
"We always try to buy locally. We get as much meat as possible from local EU-standard plants.
"We are encouraging farmers to talk to us about what we need so that they can grow the right type of product. It is not enough to grow onions: We need particular sizes for pickling, for example.
In the meantime, the tomato harvest is in full swing with 300 tons a day turning up at the Magro plant in Xewkija. During the eight-week harvest, the plant works round the clock, six days a week.
"We have 15 lorries a day crossing the channel," he said proudly.