Theprospects for this year’s Australian lychee season are good, according toMartin Walker of Lychee Export, but it will start a little later.
“We usuallystart on the 1st of December, but I expect to start around the 14ththis year. We should run until the end of March. At the moment we export toAsian markets, Pacific Islands and Canada.”
“Our onlycompetitor at that time of year is South Africa, and they usually send theirlychees by sea. This means that by the time they arrive on the market theyare around four weeks old, whereas ours are fresh. We also have a better quality,as South Africa fumigates them,” explains Walker.
“As oursare freshly air freighted and we don’t chemically treat them, the prices forAustralian lychees are higher. Normally we get around 7 or 8 dollars per kiloon the Asian market in an average season.”
Australianlychees are mainly grown in the sub-tropical climate of Queensland, and thevarieties are Kaimana, Kwei Mai Pink and Wai Chee, a later variety. LycheeExport also produces grapes, mangos, cherries and stonefruits.
For moreinformation:
Martin Walker
Lychee Export.com
Tel: +61418772217
martin@mwexport.com.au
www.lychee-export.com