Traditionally, demand for nuts and dried fruit drops noticeably in January and February, after the high-turnover Christmas holidays. "At the moment, however, it is exceptionally quiet even for the weaker months," Oualid Ben Haj Ammar, managing director of Berlin-based company Germania Nuts Ltd, tells us.
The company is dedicated to the import as well as the distribution of organic nuts and dried fruits. "The marketing situation can best be described as very sluggish. Due to Corona, the traditional marketing dip has obviously become more extreme, and this is reflected in the orders - both in number and quantity. Overall, we have had to cope with a 25-30% drop in sales, as a significant proportion of our sales are to the food service industry," says Ben Haj Ammar, summarizing the current situation.
The only exception, according to Ben Haj Ammar, is walnuts, which are currently sourced mainly from Chile, the USA and China. "Walnuts are now in demand all year round. However, increased freight rates are also making themselves felt in this product category." Across the entire product range, prices are 10-20% higher than last year's levels, the report adds. "There are extremes there, too, though: Chinese peanuts are currently at €2.50/kg, whereas just over a year ago they were trading at kilo prices of around €1."
Dried fruit: low level sales
In the organic dried fruit 
sector, Ben Haj Ammar sees a similar picture. "Things look rather bad until March-April. After that, larger volumes are needed for Ramadan and Easter." The crop failures in the important sourcing country of Turkey have affected Germania Nuts less. "Turkish apricots are available in modest quantities, but fortunately we can switch to alternative origins."
In pre-pandemic times, Germania Nuts also exported goods to Scandinavian countries. "Exports are made continuously, nevertheless only to a small extent," it finally says.
For more information:
Germania Nuts GmbH
Oualid Ben Haj Ammar
Großmarkt Berlin
Tel: 03029671054
Mobile: 01776006411
E-Mail: info@germanianuts.de
www.germanianuts.de