The cereal campaign in the Antequera region has seen losses of up to 70% in the most affected areas, according to Dcoop. Excessive winter rains and spring drought, along with a shortage of harvesters, mark one of the worst campaigns in 30 years.
The campaign balance presented this Thursday by Dcoop confirms the agricultural disaster in northern Málaga. In municipalities such as Ardales, Teba, and Campillos, losses reach 70% compared to a normal year, while in Antequera city, the reduction stands at 50%. Archidona records an intermediate decline.
Torrential rains and spring drought: the perfect storm
The head of the cereal section at Dcoop, Juan Carlos Rodríguez, explained that the intense winter rains prevented timely sowing in many fields. The subsequent waterlogging damaged the development of the cereal in the lands that could be sown.
This excess water was followed by a complete absence of rainfall in spring, just when the crop needs water the most to form the grain. The result has been a significantly reduced harvest that, according to Rodríguez, is "probably one of the worst I remember" in his 30 years in the profession.
"I have been in the sector for 30 years, and I believe this is probably one of the worst I remember," summarises Juan Carlos Rodríguez.
Shortage of harvesters and skyrocketing costs
The problem is not only climatic. The shortage of harvesters, a service provided by specialised companies that move across Andalusia, has slowed down the harvesting process. Rodríguez attributes this lack to the difficulty of finding personnel willing to work in the fields.
Additionally, production costs have skyrocketed. Fertilisers and pesticides, which rose due to the war in Ukraine, have not decreased. With a harvest reduced by up to 70%, it is almost impossible to recoup the investment.
Wheat prices at historic lows
The economic blow is exacerbated by selling prices. Hard wheat, the predominant crop in the Antequera region, is priced between €240 and €270 per tonne, levels that do not cover production costs even in a normal campaign. Soft wheat ranges between €215 and €225, and barley between €210 and €215 in the Sevilla market.
The head of corporate relations at Dcoop, Esteban Carneros, confirmed that prices remain low despite the drop in production. "Not even with a full harvest would the current costs be covered," he noted.
The Antequera region, known as the granary of Málaga, concentrates most of the province's cereal, alongside the Guadalteba and Serranía de Ronda areas. The farms are family-run and combine cereal with olive groves.
A campaign to forget
As a reference, a normal campaign in the province of Málaga produces an average of 43,159 tonnes of wheat (hard and soft) over 17,114 hectares, with a yield of 2,522 kilos per hectare. Barley, the crop with the largest area (13,417 hectares), achieves a yield of 2,958 kilos per hectare and a total production of 39,684 tonnes.
This year, those figures have plummeted. Harvesting, which began in mid-June, will continue over the next two weeks. By then, Dcoop will conclude a campaign that ranks among the most challenging of the last three decades for the cereal sector in the region.
For the local farmer, the outlook is bleak: minimal harvest, ruinous prices, and skyrocketing costs. The only hope is that the next hydrological year brings a milder winter and a spring with just the right amount of water.
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