Via Mercados Magazine. Costa de Huelva has just turned 45 and has been recognized in the XIX Andalusia Agriculture and Fisheries Awards 2025, in the Agriculture category, for being a benchmark for innovation and management sustainable practices in the agri-food sector, an award he received on November 25th. His cooperative model has strengthened farmers' market position, improving their competitiveness and production capacity.

For its president, Romualdo Macías GarcíaThe award is not just an external distinction: it is an internal tribute for a town of barely 3.000 inhabitants (Lucena del Puerto) with a cooperative that moves between 6.000 and 7.000 people each year, including members, field workers and warehouse workers.

“We consider it a tribute to partners and workers who, throughout these 45 years, have adapted to all the circumstances of the market, the environment, and the natural world, without ever losing the roots and culture of our town.”Romualdo summarizes.

This award comes in a symbolic year, at the height of a cooperative's maturity that, far from being complacent, has been ahead of trends for decades: it diversified when no one was talking about it, it invested in blueberries when it was an almost experimental crop, and it is a pioneer in applying artificial intelligence in the red fruit sector.

The blueberry revolution

Costa de Huelva was founded in 1980 as a cooperative focused entirely on strawberries. This was a time when strawberries were the star of the Huelva countryside. But in this cooperative, stagnation was never an option. “We are very restless, very active people; we like to be ahead of the curve with new things.”Romualdo explains. More than 20 years ago they began to introduce other berries: raspberries, blueberries… and extend the season.

“We went from having a 3-4 month strawberry production to producing for nearly 10 months a year with blueberries. This allowed us to keep staff on for longer and for the cooperative to be operating practically year-round.”, account.

El blueberry It ended up being the great leap forward. They saw it clearly in the experimental field that onubafruitThrough R&D projects, they developed new varieties, achieved good agronomic results, and accessed an expanding international market. From there, they made a radical decision: to stop being a "normal" strawberry cooperative and specialize in other berries.

Today they work around 1.100 hectares: approximately 800 of blueberries, about 100 of strawberries, and another 100 of raspberries, in addition to some organic and other crops. But the star is the blueberry.We are the largest blueberry producers in Huelva, producing more than nine million kilos.”, he points.

Artificial Intelligence

If there is one point that explains why Costa de Huelva has received the Agriculture Award 2025 It's their commitment to technology. “We went from being a more traditional cooperative to taking an interesting leap into technology because this is coming. And we became the first company in Spain to implement artificial vision and artificial intelligence in the world of blueberries.”Romualdo proudly states.

What used to be done by hand and eye at sorting tables, is now done by a machine.between 40 and 45 photos of each blueberry in record time.” and decide if that fruit fits the quality parameters required by the market.

Technology isn't confined to the warehouse. It's also present in data, internal management, and administration. What was once called Big Data now translates into faster and more effective decisions: forecasting, planning, cost control, and traceability. “Artificial intelligence is not smarter than us, but it gives us solutions and saves us work that used to involve paperwork, searches, and summaries.”Romualdo reflects.

And he issues a warning to the sector: "Those who fall behind in artificial intelligence will disappear; although it may seem like a fad, it is not.".

Real sustainability

Sustainability in Costa de Huelva is not just a campaign slogan. The cooperative operates just a few kilometers from Doñana National Park, and that has shaped its way of doing things.

While the public debate about water and nitrates was raging in the media, Costa de Huelva was ahead of the curve. They decided to get certified for their nitrate footprint when hardly anyone was talking about it. “We became the first berry company in the world to achieve nitrate footprint certification”the president emphasizes.

Investment to tell the truth

Amidst a barrage of negative headlines about Doñana and berries, the Costa de Huelva region has decided to take action. Not with social media campaigns, but with something much more tangible: an interpretation center and agritourism destination focused on berry culture. “This area has been spoken of very badly, and 95% of the time it’s a lie.”Romualdo states.In the end, bad things travel very fast..

The cooperative has allocated €1,5 million from its sustainability funds to create a unique space in Spain. A place to transparently demonstrate how a blueberry, a strawberry, or a raspberry is produced.

The project includes:

• A theater where schools, clients and visitors can be received and videos about the history of the cooperative and the work of the members can be shown.
• An interactive section to display real-time data on humidity, water consumption, nitrates, and other variables from the farms
• A metaverse zone, with virtual reality glasses that will allow you to "enter" a farm, walk among the plants, see the warehouse from the inside and feel in a very realistic way what daily life is like in Costa de Huelva.
• Internal visits to the production line, so that you can see how the fruit is handled, selected and prepared before it reaches the consumer.

"There's nothing like it in Spain, it will be the first."Romualdo affirms, "It's a way of giving back to the community for all the work of these past 45 years and of showing who Costa de Huelva is and what the berry culture truly is, beyond what is portrayed in the media." The center is expected to open around January or February, once the interior design and audiovisual content are complete.

Voices of the next generation

The story of Costa de Huelva cannot be understood without its farming partners. Two of them, Diego and Antonia, perfectly represent this generational shift.

Antonia Mora is responsible for Straw-eyed fruits, a company that bears his father's name.My father and my father-in-law were among those who started the cooperative in the 80s.”She recounts her childhood memories of "the back without plastic," the small arches, the first tunnels, and compares them to today's greenhouses and the sophistication of irrigation and crops. “The evolution that Costa de Huelva has undergone is abysmal”, resume.

Today he manages about seven hectares where he grows strawberries, blueberries and raspberries, although he acknowledges that strawberries remain his main focus.I know the future lies in blueberries, but for me, strawberries are my crop: they require less investment and my land responds better.”He explains. His connection with the cooperative has been constant and profound:I spend all day at the cooperative; it feels like home. It's our life.”.

Antonia also highlights how agriculture has changed: more bureaucratic requirements, more mechanization, and the need for technical support. “Before, without any formal training, we could manage a farm. Now it’s complicated.”He admits, although he points out that the cooperative makes their work much easier, especially through the technical department.

Diego Reales, from Agroberries Reales links three generations: his grandfather, his father, and now him and his brother. “In the end, it’s what we’ve lived through. My grandfather was a farmer, my father was a farmer, my whole family are farmers. They instill it in you from a young age, you like it, and before you know it, you’re just another farmer.”He says.

From a young age, almost without realizing it, he entered that world that felt natural to him. Although he studied and worked in the countryside from a young age,I started when I was eight years old.” Its formal incorporation into the cooperative came around 2020, continuing the family work started in the 80s and 90s. Today it manages about 85 hectares and has specialized in blueberries and organic produce, after having grown strawberries and raspberries. “Every master has his own method; each one knows his own profitability.”, he says, explaining his bet on blueberries.

For him, modern agriculture is very different from what his grandparents experienced: new structures, new harvesting techniques, and greater administrative requirements. When he speaks of the Costa de Huelva region, he proudly explains how it has progressed in every aspect. “and we still have a long way to go”, concludes.

A closer relationship

The relationship between members and the cooperative has also changed.It has improved.”Antonia and Diego agree. Today they feel more heard, more involved in decision-making, from the varieties that are planted to crisis management and the response to the markets.

If there's one idea that Romualdo, Diego, and Antonia repeat time and again, it's that Costa de Huelva isn't just a business. It's a way of life. Romualdo outlines the key difference with other business models:There are companies that are investment funds, that are going to make a profit, and if it doesn't work today, tomorrow they'll close down and leave. This is something else. This is our life. If it goes to hell, we all go down with it..

Thats why he Agriculture Award 2025 It carries special weight. Not only does it strengthen the cooperative's external image, but it also serves as internal confirmation that the path of technology, sustainability, innovation, and unity is the right one.