The Italian and Spanish melons have been leaving the market for some weeks now. Now, more and more batches from Brazil are on offer in Western European trade. The first weeks of this year's campaign, however, are characterized by limited volumes, especially for the popular Charentais melon, says a Swiss importer.
Start of the overseas season
The start of the season for overseas melons is heavily dependent on the last batches from Italy and Spain. This year the campaign started as usual, in late August/early September. In the case of red-pulped melons, the Charentais variety, the current market is clearly one of scarcity. Limited availability will probably remain for these products over the coming weeks. The market cannot provide enough of the heavy goods (15 Kg) in particular at the moment, since this caliber is very popular with the most important Swiss discounters.
Other requirements for the seasonal change from European goods to goods from overseas are the degree of ripeness and the coloration of the pulp. "Of course, the goods from overseas do not arrive at the same maturity levels as the European melons. But this applies mainly to the first arrivals: after about a month, that situation will be offset again," said one trader. However, at the moment there are hardly any price movements on the market. Although there are minor price differences compared to last year's levels, this is still well within normal parameters.