The drought is going to be the main burden of the 2023-2024 alfalfa campaign. This is the opinion of the sector, which sees this new season pessimistically and therefore calls on the authorities to make decisions that help alleviate the problems of the dehydrated forage sector. The sector foresees a 50% drop in production, which could jeopardize the viability of many dehydration industries.

Already in the previous campaign, the production of dehydrated forage experienced a decrease of 13%, with a decrease in all producing Communities. In Castilla y León, the drop in production was 14%, according to data from the Spanish Association of Dehydrated Alfalfa Manufacturers (AEFA).

However, this decrease was not unexpected since the crop area was reduced by 8% in the 2022-2023 campaign. In addition, growers have had to cope with water shortages and high temperatures that have led to the appearance of pests.

Regarding the distribution of the products manufactured in the last campaign, alfalfa bales were the main product, with a share of 55% of total sales, followed by pellets, which totaled 20% of the total. Other forages, as well as forage oats, completed the market.

Despite the decrease in production, sales of dehydrated forage have had “positive” sales, according to AEFA. The high demand at the beginning of the season meant that it was sold as produced on both the domestic and international markets.