La Unión exceeds 1,000 ha in cultivation

Alhóndiga la Unión’s growth is set to continue in coming campaigns. Today they have around 1,000 hectares in cultivation and certified by GlobalGAP.
Last season they traded 270 million kilos and 5% growth is forecast for the current campaign. La Unión supplies a broad variety of products, with cucumber as the main attraction at 31% of production, followed by pepper at 19%, courgette at 17%, then watermelon and tomato with 10% and the rest in aubergines, melons and beans.
Their main distribution channels are through the supermarket chains. Around 65% of their produce is traded through these outlets, while the rest is marketed by commercial agents. La Unión is raising the courgette category due to demand and the product’s widespread uptake in new destination markets. They are also introducing the round courgette, which is being very well received. Russia is currently one of their main destination markets, taking in a large percentage of exports. Moreover, last year they opened up new receiver markets in the USA and Canada. The quality department at Alhóndiga la Unión certifies the whole production process, all the way from the farm to manufacturing in their warehouses. To this end they maintain all the relevant certification such as BRC, IFS, Integrated Production, Tesco Nature, GlobalGap as well as their own laboratory, accredited by ENAC, where over 30,000 analyses are performed. The Group’s interest in the quality system is further highlighted by their initiation in GlobalGap Grasp certification and signing up to the Ecoembes programme. As part of their environmental commitment, they have 4 Sigfito pickup points for used phytosanitary product containers.
Their extensive professional trajectory continues apace with the development of a new robotic line for courgette and their latest new product, a microperforated plastic container to increase the shelf life of produce by up to 20 days.