Spain: Make way for emerging crops!

The magazine Agricultura has published an article in which it gives some clues as to what could be niche crops in Spain providing high added value. This makes them of great interest both from a profitability and agronomic point of view.

Emerging crops

The term emerging crop, "generally refers to new, recently introduced crops that respond to new demands or market opportunities. It also includes abandoned traditional crops that are once again attractive to the market," Margarita Brugarolas, president of the Spanish Agro-Food Economics Association (AEEA) says. "In all cases, it is a question of looking for profitable alternatives which are well adapted to the territory," she points out.

The director of Agriculture for the regional government of the Balearic Islands analyses what makes a crop emerging or alternative: "they can be crops with strong cultural or social roots that for decades were considered marginal or complementary, which acquire a new value derived from new uses. We can also find crops of local varieties that were abandoned due to lower productivity or a lower market value, but that resurface due to a growing demand from certain market segments that claim traditional flavors". This is the case of the “ xeixa”  (a very rustic variety of local wheat to be used to make "pan pagés"), which is being cultivated more and more every year.

A good financial and environmental alternative

There are several factors that make the emerging crop interesting for the farmer. Obviously, the first is profitability, but from an agronomic point of view, most of these crops also offer a wide range of advantages: high adaptability to different types of soils and climates, compatibility in the adaptation of their vegetative cycle to other crops, they do not tend to be excessively demanding of inputs, etc.

Moreover, the introduction of emerging crops allows for better adaptation to climate change: "the agronomic perspective and profitability go hand in hand", Ms. Brugarolas adds.

In other cases, she continues, "there are crops that did not have a commercial focus, such as carob, with functional properties, or aloe vera, which can have cosmetic applications or more recently in the food industry".

Let's take a closer look at some of these crops.

Carob

Carob, of which Spain is the world's leading producer, is the carob tree’s fruit (Ceratonia siliqua), cultivated in coastal areas of the Mediterranean basin. The carob is chopped and two products are obtained from it: the pulp (approximately 90% of the total weight of the fruit) and the seed (10%), whose characteristics and food applications are very different.

The pulp has traditionally been used in animal feed. Its flour, obtained mainly from the roasted pulp, is being re-launched for confectionery and also in the beverage industry, liqueur and syrup, among others. From the seed, once ground, a gum is obtained, used as a natural food additive (E-410) for the production of ice creams, soups, sauces, cheeses, fruit pies, sausages, confectionery, bakery products, etc.

Carob production in Spain varies between 60,000 and 80,000 tons per year. The cultivation area reaches 40,000 hectares, with the Valencian Region (44% of the total), the Balearic Islands (28%) and Catalonia (22%) standing out. They are usually small plantations of less than 5 hectares, belonging to a total of 41,500 farmers.

According to the researcher Joan Tous, "the hardiness of the carob tree, its adaptation to an expanding part-time agriculture, the increased profitability of the new plantations due to their high productivity, together with the potential commercial and healthy prospects, make mainly gum a renewed crop alternative for certain drylands and areas with scarce water resources”. “ It can also play an important environmental role in soil restoration and climate change mitigation in Mediterranean coastal areas”.

Cistus

Pedro V. Mauri, an expert on this perennial shrub, reports that Spain is, once again, the country with the largest area of cistus in the world; approximately 2.5 million hectares, distributed mainly in the southern and western half of the country.

"It has the particularity that it secretes an oleoresin that can be used for its fixing qualities in perfume industry, as well as contributing aromas to perfumes". The main product obtained is labdanum, from which the resinoid is derived, whose price is around 60 euros/kg.                                    

According to the researcher, about 50 producers are involved in rockrose cultivation throughout the country, generating more than 600,000 kg/year of gum and about 2,000 kg/year of essential oil. Andalucía is the leading producer, followed by Extremadura.

Compared to other rainfed crops such as cereals, protein crops, legumes or oilseeds, "we see that they can be much more profitable".  The valuable by-products of the prickly rockrose crop range from pollen and rockrose honey, mycorrhizae or biomass, to Cytinus hypocistis L., a parasitic plant with medicinal properties.

Among the long list of proven advantages, Dr. Mauri cites some such as no need for irrigation or fertilizers, savings in agricultural work, the absence of major pests, and its suitability for marginal areas. He adds that "cultivation with vegetation cover, given the hardiness of rockrose, would allow the promotion of biodiversity and the protection of the soil against erosion".

Truffle

It is a coveted Ascomycota fungus with a mycorrhizal symbiotic relationship with trees mainly of the Quercus genus, such as holm oaks and oaks. Through its connection with the tree's roots, the fungus provides nutrients and the tree returns sugars produced in its leaves through photosynthesis.

For Simona Doñate, director of the company Inotruf, "their characteristic aroma and much-appreciated flavor give them a well-known gastronomic importance". It is estimated that there are some 150,000 hectares of truffle plantations in Spain, with the province of Teruel (Aragón) being the largest producer. According to Doñate, the truffle's retable nature is due to the fact that "it is grown in areas where it is not possible to obtain yields from any other crop. These are areas with poor soils, where agriculture did not and does not give the results expected from other crops, as in other areas".

The Spanish truffle sector is still full of energy. "Considering the almost two years of the pandemic, the future for the truffle looks bright because, despite the limitations imposed by COVID, all the truffle produced could be sold".

Camelina

Resilient oilseed belonging to the crucifers (or the cabbage family). The director of the Camelina Company España, Aníbal Capuano, explains that it is a plant that is "not very demanding in terms of inputs, simple to handle, using conventional machinery identical to that used in the cultivation of winter cereals".  In addition, it is "easy to plant and with good tolerance to drought and frost, allowing for later sowing dates", "resistant to pests and diseases and with an allelopathic effect, so it competes well with weeds".

Castilla y León is the region where this oilseed has the largest surface area, with around 2,000 hectares sown every year, to which some 250 farmers are dedicated. Here, too, there are a number of environmental advantages leading over time to higher profitability for the farmer.

This company has developed different varieties for the production of camelina oil and with a high Omega 3 content. It also provides quick soil cover.

Other emerging crops

The article also gives the example of lavender as an "emerging crop that contributes to the revitalization of environments" by creating a unique landscape that can be exploited for tourism.

Other emerging crops are categorised as such because of their "exotic" character, such as pitahaya, kumquat and kiwiberry, which are being tested in Spain with some success.

The richness in nutritional properties is not a minor factor. Crops such as chia, quinoa, amaranth and teff have experienced a boost in Spain in recent years. Buckwheat, which is being reintroduced after being abandoned, and prickly pear cactus also stand out.

Source: Agricultura