Cordoba's garlic season has begun with forecasts indicating a 15 to 20% decrease in production due to drought. This situation is not exclusive to Cordoba as it affects the entire autonomous community, where the wages generated by this crop are expected to decrease by half.

Miguel del Pino, president of Asaja's Garlic Sector and vice president of the National Garlic Table, reported that the garlic harvest and mechanized collection of this crop in the province had started. Del Pino stressed that the area planted had decreased over the previous season, mainly due to the risk of water shortages necessary for the crop.

The harvest in Cordoba marks the beginning of the season and is Spain's second-largest garlic production. Last year, it produced 30,000-35,000 kilos, accounting for more than 30% of Andalusia's total garlic area, the second autonomous community with the highest production.

Garlic is a crop that requires a significant amount of labor throughout the year, which means that a decrease in production also hurts job creation. Wages in Andalusia have decreased by 50% and Cordoba is the most affected province.

In addition, Del Pino called on the European Commission to intensify customs controls and prevent the fraudulent entry of Chinese frozen garlic into the EU, especially through Belgium. He also suggests the creation of a specific Taric code for frozen garlic to protect local production.

Source - https://www.freshplaza.com