Nico Schaft has a long history with South African pumpkins. In 1998, he personally took pumpkin seeds from France to South Africa. Twenty-five years later, that has resulted in a substantial program. Last week, the first South African pumpkins of the new season arrived at Cool Control in the Netherlands. "Due to the high sea freight rates, I imported far fewer of those over the past two years. Rates have normalized, so I should sell a good volume again," says Nico.
His company, 888 Fruit Company, is located in the Rungis wholesale market in France. There, a variety of pumpkins, from Hokkaido and muscat pumpkins to butternut squash, are available for sale until late June. "Despite the cold weather, there's good demand. Muscat pumpkins are priced at around €1.20/kg; that's excellent. Butternut squash is under somewhat more pressure due to the Portuguese and Brazilian offerings, but the market is ready for fresh products."
888 Fruit Company sells its South African pumpkins to a wide range of customers, from wholesalers to supermarkets. "Over the years, we've seen pumpkins' popularity rise. Many supermarkets cut the pumpkins in half and sell them packaged," Nico concludes.
For more information
Nico Schaft
888 Fruit Company
Rungis, France
Tel: +33 145 603 640
Mob: +33 609 814 815
info@888fruitcompany.com