OIL PRICES SKYROCKET

LOW national olive stocks have skyrocketed the prices of extra virgin olive oil, said Alicante Young Farmers Association (Asaja), on Thursday, August 3.

ASAJA Alicante explained that this year's early flowering, which predicted a good harvest, ended up being "burned" by the extreme heat, and the trees suffered a lack of rain when the crop required it. “The rise in prices on the supermarket shelf is due to the fact that production has decreased throughout the country in a general way and there is a lack of stock, however, it does not improve profitability as the prices do not have an impact on the farmer”, stated ASAJA.

ASAJA foresees that the olive production in the province of Alicante will be around 8,000 tonnes, which means that it will be low.

“The inclement weather is negatively affecting this crop, a fact that is occurring in all the producing areas of the country. Unless we have a very rainy autumn, the organisation expects Spain to register very little harvest”, said ASAJA.

“This, together with the fact that last year's production was extremely low, means that there is no stock, and therefore the prices of olive oil are sky ­ rocketing on the supermarket shelves. They are exactly 86.4 per cent more expen­ sive than in the same period of 2022”, the organisation stated.

THE weekly analysis of Orihuela's beaches has determined that both the quality and appearance of the water is "excellent." The study is part of the periodic testing carried out by technicians from the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development, Climate Emergency and Ecological Transition. The councillor for the coast, Manuel Mestre, pointed out that "Orihuela offers quality beaches, both for residents and visitors" and that these controls "serve to guarantee optimal conditions for bathing".

The results of the analysis also indicate that the appearance of the sand on the