At last week’s Asia Fruit Logistics there was a lot of interest in Australian sweet potatoes. Allan Mahoney from Sweet Potatoes Australia said he was kept busy despite lower visitor numbers.
Traditionally Australian grown sweet potatoes went almost exclusively to the domestic market, but more recently to UAE and SE Asia. “We used to air freight to these markets everyday as sea freight just didn’t work with sweet potatoes, as you can imagine this was expensive. We are now doing Controlled Atmosphere shipping which has opened up a whole new world for us,” explains Allan.
“This year for the first time we exported sweet potatoes to the Netherlands where demand has been very good due to the shortage in supply from traditional suppliers. Customers are looking for a constant reliable supply and we can supply sweet potatoes 52 weeks of the year.”
Australia is always thought of as an expensive supplier due to high input costs, but Allan said they can compete with the current supply from Egypt and Spain, the freight cost does add a little, but he has the advantage of continuous supply.
“We have not yet shipped to the UK, but I see huge potential in this market, as the appetite for sweet potatoes there is massive and continues to grow.”
When asked if the supply to Europe would be seasonal, to fill in the gaps, he coined a phrase he picked up in Asia, ‘No reason for season’
For more information:
Allan Mahoney
Sweet Potatoes Australia
Tel: +61 439 877 025
Email: allan.mahoney@sweetpotatoesaustralia.com.au
www.sweetpotatoesaustralia.com.au