"There is a market niche willing to pay for quality and exclusivity"

So far, the current stone fruit campaign has been characterised by significant delays in the harvest and drops in the production volume, which have only got worse due to cold temperatures, hail storms and abundant rainfall.

"The weather is unpredictable and any campaign is marked by it," says Ana Beltrán, manager of Hispalco. "In the case of Spanish stone fruit, the late cold has had the worst impact, as it has taken a negative toll on the flowering and the trees' incipient fruits. Rain and hail have caused serious losses to our producers in the area of Murcia."

According to the marketer, the prices reached have not been bad, although they haven't compensated for the losses caused by bad weather.

"Obviously, when the supply cannot meet the demand, prices always increase, although this will always depend on the destination market. It is not the same in France or Italy, which have local production, as in Germany. Moreover, other countries with lower qualities have taken advantage of the rising prices to introduce their stone fruit in European markets. It is always convenient to maintain a price balance to guarantee the sustainability of the campaigns, especially when we are dealing with sensitive products without a long shelf life, as is the case of stone fruit."

The Valencian company usually starts the stone fruit campaign with the early varieties from Murcia, Huelva and Seville, around early or mid-May, depending on the weather. They continue in June with the fruit from Badajoz and Lleida, marketing the fruit from all origins, and finish in early September.

"The origin of our stone fruit, which we label under the brands Monna Lisa, Lady Godiva and Hippie Chic, is mainly Spanish, although we also sell some small volumes of French stone fruit under the La Joconde label, mainly nectarines and peaches, starting in mid-June and ending in September," explains Ana Beltrán.

"Hispalco sells what their customers demand, which is not an easy task, since the field yields a lower amount of extra quality fruit than of other categories. This year, under the Monna Lisa and Lady Godiva, which are our premium brands, we have marketed mainly nectarines, peaches, Paraguayo peaches and plums, in that order, and we have noticed a small drop in the demand for apricots."

For Hispalco, all markets are interesting, and Asia, which has attracted a lot of attention in recent times, is also attractive for this company.

"We don't usually close any doors. The Asian markets are fashionable; therefore, we do not discard them; however, at times, shipping to these markets entails logistical problems, or requires protocols that not everyone has in place. In the case of stone fruit, things get complicated, because they are sensitive fruits with a short shelf life. We have made some shipments of cherries and citrus fruits to already consolidated customers, and always by air, which results in more expensive prices; however, if Asia is interesting for Hispalco, it is precisely for this reason, as there is a market niche willing to pay for the quality and the exclusivity of our brands.