Chilean peaches have begun shipping to Canada, though the volume of peaches out of Chile continues to get lower and lower. “Chile has seen more and more volume come out of the ground as various retailers, especially in North America, have decided to not use Chilean peaches,” says Larry Davidson of North American Produce Buyers (NAPB). “Other than a few growers and a few varieties, it’s tough to plan for the proper arrival of the fruit.”
While NAPB continues to work with a few growers and varieties, it has focused on growing fruit with the integrity to handle being shipped, first by air, but later by sea. “Some retailers also do just air programs. That works fine but Chile has had many challenges with labor and water and climate and financial issues, growers have taken peaches out in the last number of years and replaced them with other stone fruit like nectarines, prune plums or cherries that are more profitable,” says Davidson.
By air, shipments began November 18-19th and NAPB has also begun loading vessel fruit, though strikes at Chilean ports mean there will be less fruit on that first vessel than expected. However, the heart of vessel peaches starts around December 19. Shipments should continue through March.
Vessel shipments better determine demand
NAPB has its established suppliers and retailers working with Chilean fruit so it is seeing even demand. Yet Davidson says it doesn’t see less demand for peaches looking ahead than it does for other items. “It’ll be hard to know how demand goes until vessel fruit starts to arrive. A lot of retailers won’t use air fruit because we’re selling 20 lbs. of peaches right now for between $90-$100 CDN, so $4.5-$5/lb. Even at the best of times, it’s not as easy for consumers,” he says. “What will be interesting to see is when vessels come in on all commodities, especially in our market in the winter and inflation and the economy, is how tertiary peaches and nectarines are for consumers during the winter.”
That said, to date, movement on the small amount of air peaches being shipped has been similar to last year. “I do suspect that this season's movement for stone fruit, in general, will be less than in past years because of the economy. That said, there are enough people in the marketplace that are happy to buy these items in the winter,” he says. “If you have really good fruit, you’ll do just fine. Because if consumers have a bad experience, you’ll lose them for the winter.”
For more information:
Larry Davidson
North American Produce Buyers
Tel: +1 (416) 255-5544
l.davidson@naproduce.com
www.naproduce.com