Just a few days after the start of the Egyptian lemons season, the growers and exporters we spoke to all agree in their assessment of a promising season. Fatimah Elzhraa Tarek El Hadary, export sales manager at Alsolimania, shares her impressions.
Fatima Elzhraa says, "At Alsolimania, we launched our Lemon campaign with the variety " Adalia " From 1st Oct to 20th Feb. There is currently a good demand due to the shortage in the market, resulting from the gap between the end of the South African campaign and the beginning of the Egyptian campaign. We expect a good season for all exporters. The great interest we saw at Fruit Attraction for lemons and Egyptian citrus in general is an indication of great demand."
Egypt exported nearly 100 thousand tons of lemon last season, and Fatima Elzhraa says she expects even greater volumes, "last season was already successful, our company exported 3,544 tons equivalent to 106 containers to Russia, Italy, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Gulf Market. This season we're taking advantage of strong demand, having increased our cultivated area by 25%."
This season, according to Fatima Elzhraa, the Egyptian citrus industry will not have a problem with small sizes like the last one. "In Lemon, we are already seeing a lower proportion of small sizes. We have 70% of 100, 113, 125, and 138, 20% of small sizes up to 150, and 10% of big sizes 80 and 88. In addition, our Quality Assurance team sends very positive initial feedback on quality in their weekly reports from different sites in Desert Road and Delta area, and we have no indication of a quality problem at the moment."
Fatima Elzhraa concludes: "We highly recommend our Eureka lemons, which are much appreciated for their oily, aromatic rind, balanced sweet and tangy flavor, uniform size and appearance, and thicker skin, which enables the fruit to be shipped over long distances without damage. Eureka A lemons are one of the two main varieties of lemon grown commercially in Egypt and are highly recommended for the Far East market."
Fatimah Elzhraa Tarek El Hadary
Alsolimania Co. For export and Import
Tel: +201016621063
Email: Fatimah.elzhraa@alsolimania.com
www.alsolimania.com