There are those who keep commercializing Comune clementines despite the fruits not having premium characteristics. This year, the weather affected the quality of the fruits, generating problems for the campaign.
"We are selling the last pallets to a few local markets in Puglia to clients looking for clementines that do not cost a lot but still taste good. We will finish quantities this weekend. The fruits have a swollen peel and a mainly soft texture, but many like them nonetheless," explains Gianni Martucci, owner of Martucci Srl, a company from Taranto that has been processing and commercializing citrus fruit for over 30 years.
"At the moment, prices vary between €0.45 and €0.55. Quotations are high, if we consider that the appearance of the produce is not very good. The weather was our main enemy: the rain and humidity compromised the fruits. It has been a short and subdued campaign."
Left toright: Gianni Martucci with a collaborator
Martucci explains that the season has not been particularly brilliant when it comes to both production and commercialization, though the operator reports having worked rather well abroad, with Eastern Europe in particular.
"We ended our supplies to Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo around one week ago. We could have continued despite the low quality, but we did not have sufficient quantities as foreign operators are used to ordering semis full of produce. Most local producers have practically finished harvesting and the few that still have produce on their trees barely manage to send us 500-700 kg each. It is impossible to fill a semi with these quantities before the integrity and freshness of the fruits gets compromised further."
For further information:
Martucci Srl
Via Chiatona,
74016 Massafra (TA)
+39 338 2620262
martucci.export@tiscali.it
martucci.info