"The grape season has been very difficult so far, and we had expected different results from overseas," says Matthias Eggemann from Fresh-Connection. "The goods from Namibia and South Africa first arrived in Europe with a slight delay, but due to the weather, the harvest did not start there until later than usual."
In Namibia it had been partly too cold and so the grapes could not ripen properly: "In that region you need temperatures of 40-45°C. In the critical period, temperatures were only around 20-25°, limiting berry size. There are hardly any 'extra large' calibres coming from this region." At the beginning of March it was raining in Hex River in South Africa and so the red grapes, which were supposed to be coming along really well, could not grow properly. "This product is now missing from the market," says Eggemann.
When it really started with the deliveries, the market situation for the African grapes in the Near and Far East was simply better than in Europe. Thus, there was a slight shortage of goods on the European market.
Unfortunate year for African grapes
At the beginning of the year, the challenge was that there were still large quantities of grapes on the market from Brazil and Peru. "At that time, the US had imposed compulsory tariffs on imports from certain countries and so much of the goods were sent to Europe, so South Africa had no way to send the excess fruits to the US."
Complicating matters are the large packaging units: containers of 8.2 kg are simply too big for the European supermarkets, Eggemann knows. "In England, these sizes are more popular, but because of Brexit, they were wary of exporting to the UK."
Grapes from India
"There are suppliers that ship a lot of goods directly from India to the Netherlands, but one has to be careful because those markets are prone to collapse. Imports from there are based on partnerships (retail, wholesale, etc). You have to have the prices right on both sides. The combination of the relatively high Indian import tariffs and oversaturation of the market can quickly become a problem."
The qualities of all fruits, from South Africa, Namibia and India, are good to very good this season. The prices however, are worse than expected: "Only late shipments were priced a bit better."
Change to new, sweeter varieties
"In South Africa, there are many new varieties that are much more aromatic regarding their flavor than the standard varieties and they are trying to find more and more new varieties there. On the one hand, the sweet taste plays a role, on the other hand itt is all about varieties that are more stable and less vulnerable."
Fresh-Connection Fruchtimport GmbH supplies wholesalers, retailers and service providers in Germany, Scandinavia, Benelux, France, Austria, Switzerland and Italy.
For more information:
Matthias Eggemann
Fresh-Connection Fruchtimport GmbH
Tel.: +49 (0) 40 286 689 0
E-mail: eggemann@fresh-connection.com
Web: www.fresh-connection.com