“The market for limes has been stable for a few weeks now. In August and September, it was back and forth. The supply from Mexico and Brazil was normal with no excessive volumes. However, the big sales and campaigns stayed away. ” This is according to Frank Ocampo of Hagé International in the Netherlands. There were hardly any shortages. This was due to the stable supply from both countries.
Prices keep fluctuating between EUR5 and EUR7. “Prices have come under increased pressure since the end of last month. This is because somewhat larger volumes have become available in the spot market. This increase in volume is due to the low program sales. There is also a slightly larger supply from Mexico. There was good production in the Martinez de la Torre region in that country”, says Frank.
Not much money to be made
There are better payout prices in the US. Even so, the volume to Europe was maintained. “As always, volumes from Brazil have been lower in recent weeks. It is expected that larger volumes will once again come to market at the end of October", says Ocampo. The current price for Mexicans limes is bouncing around the EUR5 mark. This will remain so in the coming weeks.
"There is currently not much money to be made in this product group. It is, however, enough to live off. The market is expected to remain much the same in the coming weeks. This is provided prices and volumes increase. But, then again, the market will have to be shared with Brazilian products.”
“The lime market varies from year to year. This is despite the controlled cultivation in Brazil and Mexico. It cannot be assumed that supply and prices will be the same every year. Given the anticipated export from both Brazil and Mexico, I do not foresee any price increases for limes in the coming weeks”, says Frank.
Pineapples
“The anticipated pineapple price hike was not realized. These were to have been caused by last month's strikes in Costa Rica. There was always surplus stock over the past few weeks. This surplus was partly due to the abundant supply and weak sales in the summer. Many importers were in a positive mood because of the strikes. They hoped to get prices of between EUR9 and EUR10 on the free market.
Prices reached EUR7.50, at most, for the 10/9/8 sizes and EUR8.50 for 7/6/5. Currently, double volumes are coming in left and right. This means prices in the market will, once again, vary between EUR5 and EUR8. The low price pineapples will mainly be old fruit that is included in the new shipment. Or it will be old on-hand stock", continues Frank.
Surplus
The good, fresh pineapples will remain cost-effective for programs as well as the free market. “However, the delayed surplus will create an unrealistic benchmark. It will also not help in getting the right price in the market”, says the importer. It is expected that prices will remain stable in the weeks to come. "This is a very poor year in terms of sales compared to the previous two years. The high volumes and low demand have ensured that cost prices are difficult to realize. It will not improve this year."
The expectation for 2019 also looks bleak for pineapples. Shipping companies have increased their prices for the whole of Central America. This will have an effect on melons and pineapples from that region. The production in Costa Rica also increased. “A number of large farmers continue planting new plantations, undisturbed. This, despite the fact that there is no more room on the market. With that in mind, importers will have to pay close attention to what they import", says Frank.
"They need to keep the program prices cost-effective. They will also need to maintain a stable price in the free market. No-one is interested, with prices of EUR5. Weeks with prices above EUR10 will also become scarcer. The accompanying phenomenon is that Panama has also been more active in the market in recent weeks. In some cases, the quality of the Panamanian product is even better than that of the Costa Rican pineapples”, concludes Frank.
For more information:
Frank Ocampo
Hagé International
1 Spoorwegemplacement
2991 VT Barendrecht
Tel: +31 (0) 180 648 765
F.ocampo@thegreenery.com
www.hage-international.nl