"Frost damage but Chilean cherry production not too bad"

Jacques Mayol imports various products from overseas. At the moment he supplies Chilean cherries from the hallmarks Royal, Copefrut and David del Curto. The season started five weeks ago and will last till the middle of February. Jacques mentions that, like every year, the season started well. "Even with higher prices than other years. After two weeks the demand was slightly less, but now, a little more than a week before Christmas, we notice that the market becomes more active again."

Jacques Mayol

Production in line with last year
After the heavy frost in Chile this season serious damage was expected in the cherry orchards. "But that could have been worse compared to other top fruit. Also there is a continuous increase in the Chilean cherry area, which compensated for the shortage of fruit. Finally the production will be about the same as last year. Also Argentina this year had problems with frost, but that was a lot more severe than with the Chilean cherries. This year there will not be much on our market from Argentina."

China promising
"Over the past few years China has grown to become a new promising destination for Chilean exporters, especially for cherries. This market has not as yet reached maximum capacity and as a result exporters are not looking at Europe as much as in the past. But I expect that when the new cultivations in Chile are in full production, they will move their attention to Europe again".

"The prices of the cherries are between 10 and 15 Euro in Europe depending on sizes and varieties. The general quality is good and up to now clients mention that they enjoy them" the trader concludes.

For more information:
Jacques Mayol S.A.
112-154, Quai des Usines
1000 Brussels
Tel: +32-27850295
Fax: +32-27850292
GSM: +32-475283025
jacques.mayol@telenet.be