The shipping companies Trasmed and Baleària have guaranteed the transport of supplies to the Balearics until Tuesday, then they foresee problems due to the impact of the transporters' conflict on the mainland. Ships departing from Valencia, Barcelona and Denia are currently arriving in Mallorca and the rest of the islands with an occupancy rate of 60% in their holds, a percentage that will drop significantly if the transport strike intensifies next week.
The Balearic Port Authority (APB) said that since last Tuesday the overall volume of goods arriving at the ports has fallen by more than 25 %, but in some it has exceeded 40 %. In recent days the drop has been greater due to the impact of the hauliers' strike.
All the food products come through the port of Valencia, specifically those of Lidl and Mercadona, while from Barcelona come those of Eroski and El Corte Inglés.
The Chamber of Commerce of Mallorca is concerned that the shortage of dry (non-perishable) products is increasing and is already affecting the supply chain of the Balearics.
"If there is no prompt solution, the entire reactivation and reopening of the hotel industry for Easter is in danger," the chamber of commerce and industry representatives have said.
On Friday it was reported that the strike has already caused more than 600 million in losses to the primary sector, industry and food distribution.
They explain that farmers, livestock farmers, fishermen and producers cannot prevent thousands of tonnes of food already produced from going to waste because it cannot be distributed.
The ports and fish markets are also having problems operating and this has meant that many restaurants have had problems since last Thursday in acquiring certain products, especially those from the sea.