Core Fruit’s avocado business is mostly in continental Europe and the UK, where it makes over 90% of its shipments. “On this first year exporting avocados, a total of 1.3 million cartons are expected to be shipped. Growers are making a lot of new plantings, so volumes should also continue to increase,” affirms Nico.
He said that, in terms of demand, they perceive a good growth, which certainly makes avocados an interesting product. In this market, South Africa competes mostly against Peru, “although it is difficult to compare, because we grow the same variety: the Hass, which is the most popular by far. Quality is similar, but our strategy focuses on offering retailers a good shelf life.”
Regarding grapefruit, Nico assures that early market conditions are quite good and they hope they’ll stay that way. “The market is growing in the Far East, in destinations like Japan or China, so there is good demand for grapefruit at the moment.”
"It has been dry in some areas, and in those places fruit sizes may be smaller, but at the moment it is still early too early to provide an accurate estimation. In any case, we’ll try providing each market the sizes they demand,” explains Nico.
The situation is also good in the lemon market and Nico expects it to remain so in the medium term. “Growers have been planting big volumes, but there is still room to continue growing, so I don’t foresee any market crash. All in all, at this early stage, the citrus market should be good for the company,” he concludes.
For more information:
Nico van StadenCore Fruit
Tel: +27 21 863 6312
Email: nico@corefruit.com
www.corefruit.com