Malaga province's muscatel raisins 'in danger of disappearing' after harvest falls by 80% due to fungus

The muscatel raisin sector of the Axarquía area of Malaga province is "in serious danger of disappearing", after suffering yet another year of a decrease in production due to a mildew fungus, which has seriously damaged the harvest, with 80% losses. This indicates that many raisin drying racks will be empty this year.

The drought and the mildew fungus have seriously damaged an area whose star product is the raisin. Many Axarquía villages and hundreds of families depend on the production of it for their livelihood. It is estimated that more than two thousand families maintain this ancestral crop in the small inland municipalities of the eastern area of the province.

General secretary of the union of small farmers (Upa) in Malaga Francisco Moscoso said that the majority of farmers "will not even manage to fill one and a half racks", which will lead to substantial economic losses, "because production costs remain high and ruinously low farm-gate prices make the crop unsustainable".

"We are going to experience another very concerning situation this summer. The rains that fell with the 'Dana' had raised expectations for a good harvest, but the lack of rainfall since then has been very damaging. The high incidence of mildew has been the final straw, meaning that the Axarquía, which is the main producer of raisins in Malaga, will see this year's crop greatly reduced," Moscoso warned, adding that the vines this year had initially indicated that the harvest would be good.

"There have already been many seasons in which we have suffered a significant drop in production, sometimes up to 60%. The situation in 2025 is more serious than ever, because the losses rise to an average of 80% of the harvest. Before, a farmer who had five racks could fill three at the most, if they were lucky. This year, if they can fill one and a half, it will be a miracle," Moscoso said.

"Producers in the Axarquía will find it very difficult to keep their farms operational. Substantial losses due to the scarce production of raisins, high production costs, which are constantly increasing, and the ruinous farm-gate prices we receive for this excellent product make cultivation unviable in an area that lives off the vines. We fear that many farmers will not be able to continue with their farms, which means that the future of the sector is quite uncertain. The poor harvest we will have is going to make many farmers rethink whether to continue," Moscoso explained.

He launched a "desperate" appeal to administrations. "We can't take any more. If we at least had fair farm-gate prices, we could hold on and look to the future with some optimism. This is why it is necessary for the administrations to be aware of the reality we are going through and help us make a decent living from our crops and in our villages," Moscoso stated.

Producers are also concerned that they do not receive any compensation from the "alleged publicity" that goes hand in hand with being "listed in the world agricultural heritage system" since April 2018. According to Moscoso, other crops do not experience the same lack of results from promotion. "Administrations should adopt measures aimed at real promotion that will have a positive impact on farmers," Moscoso stated.