In Egypt the grape growers are working hard for grape season. The weather in Egypt has resulted in a slightly later start of the flowering, but so far the season is expected to be an exciting one for the Egyptian traders. One specific trader is even going for a Fair Trade label on their grapes.
May Salem, General Manager for FinBi for Land Reclamation and Agricultural Development (FinBi), is excited for the start of the new grape season: “Even though weather has slowed the season down by about ten days, the window for Egyptian grapes is still looking very good. Especially our red variety, which is looking at a healthy demand. I’ve heard the demand for white superior grapes isn’t as high, but since our focus is on the red grapes for the most part, we are absolutely fine with this.”
Last year, Egypt faced a lot of fierce competition from Chile, India and South Africa. May is noticing a trend where people are more interested in Egyptian produce though: “We were already quite established in the United Kingdom, Holland and Germany. But we’re seeing more interest from different countries in Europe that we had not been dealing with before. There are opportunities in the Canadian and Chinese market, as we’re sending shipments there that should arrive in perfect state. The coding of the fruits is still going on, which we expect will help with sending produce to China,” Salem continues.
FinBi was an exhibitor during Fruit Logistica in Berlin for the second time. According to Salem, this has definitely paid off for the traders: “We’re expecting visitors from France around May and it is very encouraging to see response only a few months after meeting the new potential clients during the exhibition. There is actually quite some interest from the French market, so this should be a very exciting season for the Egyptian grape traders, including us. Our farms are also in the process of obtaining a Fair Trade certificate, which is a certificate that very few Egyptian farms have, so I have high hopes that it will make our business stand our even more.” Salem concludes.
For more information:
May Salem
FinBi for Lan Reclamation and Agricultural Development
Tel: +202 37495 616
Email: May@natesngrapes.com
www.natesngrapes.com