The Israeli capsicum market has not been very good over the last few years. Prices have been very low, and an increasing number of growers in Israel, have switched to other, more profitable, crops. Things are, however, about to change, according to Omer Kamp from Arava Export Growers.
“We are expecting prices to go up next week because of cold weather in Spain,” he says. “This is going to have an effect on prices. There is a common feeling that two things are going to happen this year,” he continues. “Firstly, they say the weather in Spain is going to get colder, so they are going to have less yield. This will mean more Israeli capsicum in market, resulting in higher prices.”
“The second thing is that growers in the Israeli export companies have come to a realisation that quality, packaging, appearance, everything behind the scenes, as well as what customers see, are imperative to any kind of success. Now we understand that we must do more if we want to get more,” says Omer. “If you take these two things into consideration, we are looking at moderate to above-average prices this season.”
New era
Omer anticipates a positive change in the market. He says the wake-up call for them was when, a few months ago, one of their US clients told them that “not long ago, I considered Israeli capsicums to be the best in the world, but today, I think the Spanish ones are better.” Omer says, “While we sat idle, doing nothing, Spain upgraded their ‘arsenal’. Now they have very good quality, and they have become extremely important potential competitor. If we do nothing, we are going to lose everything.”
He admits that growers in Israel are still cutting back on their capsicum crops and/or switching to other crops. “Every year we see more and more growers looking for alternatives. This is how the market fluctuates. It is not necessarily a bad thing. It could, on the contrary, be a good thing because we are no longer aiming for large volumes. Our goal is now quality over quantity.”
Widespread exportation
Arava Export Growers sends their products all over the world. “It is true that the majority of our products go to Russia, but this year we sent a large volume to the US already. Now we are concentrating more on the European market,” says Omer. This widespread exportation is a means of spreading their volumes in such a way as to maximise their returns.
“The pepper market, as a whole, is still extremely promising”, he says. “I think the demand for capsicums is going to increase.” The trend towards healthy eating is contributing to this, according to Omer, as capsicums are proven to be very high in Vitamin C.
Omer says Arava Export Growers still reserves the highest volumes of capsicums for Israel. “We are determined to remain that way. We have an obligation to our growers, and we will do everything in our power to ensure that capsicums remain profitable.”
For more information:
Omer Kamp
Arava Export Growers
Tel: +972 3 972 8127
Mob: +972 52 533 4763