Moroccan carrot exports are now continuing to rise with a volume that has been multiplied by nearly 1.5 in 2022, as well as in January 2023. In addition, sub-Saharan Africa remains the main destination for these exports, while those towards the European Union (EU) continue their downward trend, reports the specialized portal EastFruit.
Morocco’s carrot exports have grown 46% annually since 2017 to reach a record high of 43,000 tonnes in 2022, says agriculture-focused site EastFruit. In addition, these have considerably extended their supply season, and the peak has moved to late autumn 2022, while exports started falling earlier in September.
Morocco also started 2023 with a record 2,700 tonnes of carrot exports, up 80% from January last year.
Moreover, unlike greenhouse tomatoes, sweet potatoes or fresh blueberries, the supply of Moroccan carrots is mainly concentrated in sub-Saharan African countries, while exports to the EU remain low and continue to decline.
The specialist points out that exports to the EU peaked at 1,400 tons in 2020, but two years later only 730 tons of carrots were exported to the European zone from Morocco. It should also be mentioned that around 10% of all Moroccan carrot exports in 2017 were destined for EU countries, and their share fell to 2% in 2022.
According to EastFruit, the main importers of carrots from Morocco are the countries of West Africa, or rather the western part of the African region of the Sahel, namely Mauritania, Senegal, Mali, or even Burkina Faso, among others. Remember that the Sahel is one of the regions of the world most affected by climate change and therefore by drought and water stress.
In 2021, the portal continues, the rainy season began there with a great delay, and in some places there was a severe drought. A year later, the situation in the western Sahel reversed and storms swept through the region, causing devastating floods. In addition, local producers have had to deal with an overall increase in fertilizer prices, and the current level of famine threat in the region is very high.
As a result, Sahelian countries are forced to increase imports of many agricultural products, including carrots. Mauritania has thus at least doubled its imports of carrots and onions over the past five years, with the Netherlands and Belgium being the main suppliers, along with Morocco.