According to Dinheiro Vivo, olive production for olive oil is expected to rise 20 percent this year, compared to 2022, to 2,495 kilograms per hectare, according to agricultural forecasts from the National Statistics Institute (INE).

The heat during the flowering and fruit setting “compromised some production” of olive oil, however, the INE predicts an increase of 20 percent in this production.

While production in 2022 the production was 2,079 kilograms per hectare, in 2023 the INE predicts a production of 2,495 kilograms per hectare, still 3 percent above the five-year average.

In the case of table olives, INE also expects an increase of 20 percent, to 2,905 kilograms per hectare, compared to the 2,421 kilograms per hectare.

“In traditional olive groves, production is expected to be much higher than in 2022, but in intensive olive groves in full production, productivity is expected to stabilise”, adds the INE in a statement released today.

INE states that “many recently planted intensive olive groves continue to come into production”.

Among the variety of harvests, the arbequina harvest has been concluded, while the galega and conbrançosa harvest continues to take place.

The operation of the olive oil mills began earlier due to “the advance of the vegetative cycle of the olive trees”.

The INE noted that forecasts point to a reversal of the meteorological drought situation in most of the continental territory, with a week of drought of 12.8 percent in Setúbal, Beja and Faro.

In the case of kiwis, the outlook is for production to be close to that of the last two years, while almonds had the highest production ever, in total 53 thousand toons – “due to the entry into cruise production of many orchards, mostly located in the Alentejo”.

Weather conditions have caused the decline of production, in the case of chestnuts, which for the second consecutive year is expected to have “significant decreases in production (-33 percent compared to the average of the last 5 years)”.

The end of the spring crop campaign confirmed higher production than the last year in the case of tomatoes (1.68 million tons, +32 percent), while corn for grain grew by 5 percent and rice by 10 percent.

Rice production, despite having its harvest limited by rain, is expected to increase 10 percent to 171 thousand tons.

The 30 percent decrease in sunflower production, compared to 2022, is exclusively due to the reduction in the area. In the case of pome fruit, such as apples or pears, there was a negative balance of the latter for the second consecutive year.

According to INE, the rains and high temperatures in October promoted favourable conditions for the germination of spontaneous herbs, which boosted good regeneration and vegetative development of natural dryland pastures.