The Regional Commissioner of Agriculture (CRDA) for Nabeul in Tunisia has said tomato production is expected to rise
Overall production for the region is forecast to reach 300,000 tonnes in the 2015 season, according to the estimates, representing a significant rise from the 265,000 tonnes produced in the previous season.
The director of vegetal production Faicel Loussif said the progress could be put down to a number of contributing factors, including the availability of irrigation water, recent favourable weather conditions and the increase in the size of the land dedicated to tomato cultivation.
Around 5,300 hectares (ha) in Nabeul is currently used for tomato farming, Loussif estimated, compared to 4,915 ha in 2014, while the area allocated to dried tomato production for exports reached 50 ha.
Around 4,500 farmers in Nabeul are committed to growing tomatoes, representing 35 per cent of seasonal summer crops in the region, and around 25 per cent of the national production.
The number of tomato processing units in the region has also risen, to 14, highlighting the importance of the crop to Nabeul’s farmers.
