Egyptian strawberries are having a difficult season. "Just like the entire Middle East. However, the weather's been terrible in Egypt. That hasn't done the strawberries' quality any good," says Alain Tulpin of the Tulpin Group in Belgium. "The week before Christmas, it snowed in Alexandria, and in Cairo, it kept raining. Temperatures in the fields barely got above freezing. And during the day, it stayed around 12°C. So, there are very few good quality Egyptian strawberries on the European market."
Photo: Nik Deblauwe
That applies to all strawberries. "Too much fruit that's prone to, for example, botrytis, has been brought in. That's due to the heavy rainfall. And that keeps prices too low. Moroccan and Spanish strawberries should normally have been on the market by now. That's coming, but not in quantities that will determine the market. As a result, plenty of poor quality strawberries remain."
Tulpin usually supplies this fruit mostly to England, Ireland, and the Netherlands. But it is currently sending a lot of strawberries to Germany, Poland, and Hungary as well. "They're far more critical in England. They won't take strawberries unless they're picture-perfect. We're still sending to there, but it's a lot less. That's why countries like Poland, Hungary, and Denmark are coming onto the market. That's also partly because they can't find enough volume in Spain," says Alain.
Alain has several suppliers in Egypt who have pumped more money into plastic greenhouses. "They get good quality volumes every day. They're, therefore, very busy at the moment. The rest, on the other hand, have big problems." Nevertheless, there is light at the end of the tunnel. "It's now sunny in Cairo and will remain so. This week, temperatures will be between 18 and 22°C. That's acceptable to start producing," he says. "The product from Egypt is still safe for the next two months. That's if supply from other countries stays away. We'll have to wait and see what happens."
Airfreight
This lower supply has lessened the expected airfreight issues. "Foreign planes wanted to fly less to Egypt. So, a shortage was feared. However, Egyptair takes care of that for that country's exporters. Egyptair brings the products to Oostende [in Belgium]. We've added a few charters there too. They used to fly to Liège. But, the shippers had too many post-treatment complaints. They now come to Oostende, so we've had no problems," concludes Alain.
For more information:
Alain Tulpin
Tulpin Group
Bus 6, 2A Kapelle Street
8460, Oudenburg, Belgium
Tel: +32 (0) 598 06 633
Email: hq@tulpingroup.eu
Website: www.tulpingroup.eu