"The volumes for us have now increased by 500% -600%."

Twelve years ago Irish fruit and veg importer Smyths Food Group got a call from a supermarket called Lidl, then unknown in Ireland, the retailer wanted Smyths to import and ripen bananas for them. Firstly conventional bananas, then Fairtrade and then organic. Now Smyths is also supplying funsizes pre-packs and organic pre-packs. Firstly conventional loose bananas, then Funsize pre-packs and subsequently Fairtrade-Organic pre-packs too.

"Since those early days there have been big changes in volumes," explains Managing Director, Marc Andrews. "Lidl had just entered the Irish market so they have gone from a low base of 20 stores to around 80 over 180 or so these days on the island. The volumes for us have now increased by 500% -600%."

Smyth's have their own ripening rooms situated just outside Dublin. There are 12 rooms which hold 24 pallets and four which hold 36 pallet rooms and they can handle 30,000 boxes each week, and can supply both north and southern Ireland from there.

As well as supplying Lidl the company also supplies wholesalers and other retailers and have premises adjacent to Dublin Fruit Market, in addition to bananas they supply a wide variety of fruit of veg.

Andrews says that the demand for organic and Fairtrade bananas is growing, and the annual promotion in Fairtrade fortnight really give it a boost.

Smyths imports bananas from Costa Rica, Ecuador and the Dominican Republic.

"Bananas are regularly sold below cost in UK, but are not quite so low in Ireland. We need to be careful that we don't take the value out of produce by selling it too cheap. Selling produce too cheap just leads to food waste as we saw when they sold veg for a few pence cents/kg one Christmas, two or three years ago" said Andrews.

"As an importer we would always want a higher price, but you do need look at the cost, they are being supplied under cost price at the moment. This may have been disguised for a few years by a low dollar but we are seeing a difference now that dollar is high again, it is up about 25%," according to Andrews. "Its not up to us to dictate what the retailers charge for bananas so we have to try and negotiate to get a good price, at the end of the day if you don't get a good enough price you will go out of business."

In the future he would like to see more Fairtrade bananas, no Irish supermarket has yet committed to 100% Fairtrade, although 3 of the UK retailers have.

Andrews suggests that maybe there is just not enough pressure from the public on the subject.

For more information:
Marc Andrews
N. Smyth & Co. Ltd.
Tel: +353 1 8742621+353 1 8742621
Email: marc@smythsfoodgroup.ie
www.smythsfoodgroup.ie