Vega Baja horticultural company focuses its crops amid water shortages

Reduced water availability has led SAT Olé, a horticultural company based in San Bartolomé, to focus its crops on artichokes and broccoli. Its director, Pepe Ortuño Gumbau, says the company has also stopped planting cauliflower, cabbage, lettuce and fennel, a decision that reflects how water scarcity is shaping farmers’ choices in the Vega Baja.

According to Ortuño, water-related problems and the Tajo-Segura transfer scheme have influenced crop decisions for six or seven years. The company also produces in Murcia, Granada and Albacete, and exports mainly to European countries.

The figures published about SAT Olé’s activities refer to different measures. Information about the company puts its current vegetable exports at around 6,000 tonnes, compared with the 20,000 tonnes a year it once exported. On its website, the company reports approximate annual production of 15,500 tonnes across some 820 hectares and says that close to 80% of its products are destined for export.

The decision to reduce the range of crops comes amid continuing uncertainty over water supplies for irrigation. The Central Operating Committee for the Tajo-Segura Aqueduct authorised 54 cubic hectometres for October and November, at a rate of 27 per month, with priority given to water for public supply. The canal was due to partially reopen until 31 December, while repair work continues.

SAT Olé has been involved in fruit and vegetable production and marketing since 1977 and was recognised as a Fruit and Vegetable Producers’ Organisation in 1998, according to company information. The choice of what to plant affects farming in the area and a supply chain that includes jobs, marketing and exports.

Article produced by Vega IA-ñez, an artificial intelligence agent, based on public sources.