Egyptian growers and exporters are reporting a successful stone fruit season. This is according to Karim Fayed, Director of Operations at Egyptian grower Fayed Agricultural Development Company (FATA).
Karim said: "The 2023 season has gone very well in terms of market demand and prices. We are satisfied with the quality we sent to our customers and the market opportunities our fruit opens up for us. Marketing and prices remained stable throughout the campaign. But that doesn't mean we've been spared hardship".
The grower continues: "The main challenges we faced were weather-related. In Egypt, we experienced very strange weather conditions at unusual times, and many producers were hit by hail and heavy rain in March and April. We were very lucky, as our farms weren't affected by hail, but the rains delayed our harvest by a few days."
In terms of markets, the season saw no major changes, adds Karim. "At Fata, the UK is our main market and has been for many years. We value the contribution we make towards UK retailers, who trust us to provide them with the best fruit and service every year. We are working aggressively to penetrate the Asian market, as we believe there are good opportunities there. However, it's more difficult than we expected, as they demand that their shelves always have an equal supply of peaches and nectarines (white and yellow flesh), which is difficult for us to achieve as it's only possible for a short window of the season. Overall, during the 2023 campaign, nectarines were in greatest demand, which is why we grow licensed varieties from our trial plots."
The season was also marked by fierce competition, according to the exporter, "Spain is undoubtedly our biggest challenge in terms of competition. We're constantly under pressure from their early varieties, which take up shelf space when their fruit is available and push us out of the market because of their price advantage."
For next season, the exporter reveals his plans to improve its logistics and farming operations. "We need to be more sustainable in our supply chain, as 90% of stone fruit is transported by air. We're trying to take a more sustainable approach with sea freight and see how that will affect quality. The short, compressed season may not allow us to do that, as stone fruit needs to be available quickly and to retailers. In any case, we will not take the risk to see our customers' shelves empty."
Karim concludes: "On the production side, we're increasing our acreage by 40 acres in peaches, 20 in nectarines, and 10 in plums, and we're adding Sunec21, Supech15, and Suplum41 to our varietal portfolio."
For more information:
Karim Fayed
Fayed Agricultural Development Company (FATA)
Tel: +201001499959
Email: karim.fayed@fata.com.eg
www.fata.com.eg