"The Apple in the World" conference (three days
of debates and speeches on the key issues of the
sector) will take place once again during Interpoma
2016, the international trade fair for the cultivation,
storage and marketing of apples at Fiera Bolzano
from 24 to 26 November 2016. A total of twenty
speakers will be addressing the industry's hottest topics.
The topic of the first day, Thursday 24 November, will be "The apple market in a transition phase", with a discussion on how to respond to the critical moment apparently affecting the sector. In particular, attention will be paid to the new market needs, the "South Tyrol model", the needs of importers and the issue of sustainable fruit growing. There will even be a statistician who will provide various data on the steadily declining consumption of apples. Why is this happening? Perhaps the "old generation" of consumers is dying out? What are the possible ways out of this deadlock?
On the second day, 25 November, the focus will switch to consumers - the theme will be: "Consumers talk" -, examining the main factors influencing the purchase of an apple, from taste to price, size, consistency, as well as expectations for the new varieties of apples. There will also be a report on the very promising future of apple-based processed products.
The final day, Saturday 26 November, will be more centred on the long-term future of the sector and "News from science, research and technology". In particular, the focus will be on the behaviour of old and new varieties of apples at a sensory and health level, modern plant nurseries and related propagation techniques, the use of drones in orchards, programmed irrigation in orchards, and the “ Monalisa ” international project, with the participation of various experimental stations to monitor key parameters of the alpine environment, in order to ensure a quality production. The session will end with a discussion on "Eufruit", the European theme network on innovation in fruit growing.
"The program of "The Apple in the World" is already fully defined - said Kurt Werth, coordinator of the conference, - and also this year the leading international experts in the sector will be there. There are plenty of topics for discussion. With the 2014 harvest we had one of the worst years since 1999, in terms of price. There were basically two reasons for this negative performance: European production and the well-known Russian embargo, which affected not so much South Tyrol exports as Polish exports, since Poland was the largest exporter of apples to Russia. Polish production, therefore, has sought outlets especially in EU countries. Because of this the South Tyrol was faced with a big problem concerning prices, compared to a production that has remained virtually constant, at around 1.2 million tonnes. But there is a substantial difference between those offering new varieties and those offering traditional ones. In fact, those entering the market with apples such as Pink Lady, Kanzi, Jazz, or in any case with innovative and club varieties, got an acceptable price. Traditional varieties such as Braeburn and Golden are the ones most affected by this situation."
"Production in 2015 - concludes Werth - was at normal levels. In the South Tyrol, the rather low temperatures in autumn favoured the colour of the fruit. Prices are up a bit on the previous year, but far from ideal. It's still too early to make any predictions."
For the complete program of "The Apple in the World": www.fierabolzano.it/interpoma
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