A trade mission from Sicily visited Dubai in the United Arab Emirates to promote PGI table grapes from Mazzarrone with a special focus on the H&R sector.
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Italia grapes
Trade agreements are based on the fact that the grapes supplied is extremely fresh, as it is harvested the day before shipping to be served in one of the many luxury hotels in Dubai. The key element is of course air transport - a direct flight from Catania reaches Dubai in only six hours.
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The loading of the goods
PGI table grapes often reaches hotels for breakfast the day after it is shipped and receives great feedback from guests, used to flavorful food and luxury in general.
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The importer company in Dubai
Logistics is accurate and very precise. The air broker uses a scheduled flight and brilliantly passed all the steps required by the Catania airport, also very efficient.
Once the grapes lands in the Arab peninsula, it goes through customs and reaches the hotels already at 6.30 am - proof of the fact that fresh produce has a different value from the one that travels by ship for days, from both an organoleptic and commercial point of view.
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The varieties shipped this time were Italia, Red Globes and Black Magic, all of which are very popular. The network also includes two essential figures, i.e. the exporter in Italy and the importer in the UAE. They are pivotal when it comes to logistics and customs, especially since phytosanitary regulations are strict.
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Mazzarrone grapes on display in a restaurant
This experience mainly teaches us two things: the first is that the produce with the necessary requirements can be commercialized via high-end channels without having to be relegated to a niche; the second is that there are indeed opportunities outside of northern Europe.
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A guest at the hotel
Therefore, if the produce is of high quality, the Middle East is a market that can be reached thanks to its luxury destinations, especially if the produce reaches customers in 24-48 hours.
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At the centre, Eecutive Chef Lal Tamang
Once again, Freshplaza.it was called to document a very important commercial mission. The expertise of our newspaper proved essential to glue businesses located in different continents. Professionalism and skill reduced the distance to a mere geographic data.
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Night view of the square in front of the Dubai Mall
The advice to companies is to get equipped with the right tools to approach international fresh produce trade and intercontinental high-end trade in particular.