The National Association of Garlic Producers and Traders (ANPCA) held a technical meeting last Friday in which producers and marketers analyzed the progress of the 2026 campaign, the evolution of the European market, and the main lines of action to defend the sector’s competitiveness in the face of increasing imports from third countries.
During the meeting, participants agreed on a very positive assessment of the campaign in terms of quality. The area planted in Spain this year remained stable compared to the previous season and is far from the nearly 30,000 hectares cultivated in 2022, standing slightly above 24,000 hectares in 2026.
The harvested garlic shows excellent sanitary and commercial conditions, which will allow the sector to offer the market a high‑value product with recognized prestige. In terms of yields, Spring garlic has recovered the production levels lost in previous seasons due to climatic issues, while Purple garlic, despite its excellent quality, ultimately recorded yields slightly below the high expectations at the beginning of the campaign.
Garlic in the European market
One of the central issues discussed was the situation of the European garlic market. Over the past decade, garlic imports from third countries into the European Union have increased significantly, by 128.4%, reaching 111,812 tonnes, mainly from China (74,231 tonnes, +98.1%) and Egypt (19,555 tonnes, +390.3%). This trend has generated growing concern among producers due to its impact on market balance and farm profitability.
In response, the association agreed to initiate the necessary steps to request the activation of the erga omnes safeguard clause for European garlic, a tool included in EU trade regulations that would allow the impact of these imports to be assessed and, if necessary, correct market imbalances.
As part of this process, a proposal for a survey aimed at producers and sector organizations in different Member States was presented. The goal is to gather the economic, production, and commercial information required by national authorities and the European Commission to technically support the request for activation of the safeguard clause.
ANPCA emphasizes the importance of the entire sector’s participation in order to build a solid, objective, and representative database that can demonstrate the harm caused by rising imports to European production and support the request before EU institutions.
The association reaffirms its commitment to continue working in coordination with the national sector and its European counterparts to defend the competitiveness of European garlic and ensure the viability of a strategic crop for numerous rural areas.
