As various countries have started up their citrus season, there’s a lot of movement in the market for certain products, says Triland CEO Mariya Dermendzhieva: “Our company sources citrus from Egypt, South Africa, Argentina and China, and then exports them. We just finished the export of Chinese honey pomelo with EU MRL levels, and have now started the export of the so-called ‘papagan’, which has been incredibly popular in South East Asia for the last few years. It’s sold mainly around Chinese New Year, in a gift-pack. But what we are now seriously preparing for is the Egyptian oranges season, which starts in less than four weeks, with Navel and Baladi oranges.”
Demand has been very strong, right from the start of the season, Dermendzhieva explains. “This season is quite different when it comes to demand. We started receiving enquiries for Navel and Valencia in September, during Asia Fruit Logistica. Most of our clients are planning their supply for the 2024 season well in advance and already settled their needed volumes with us. This gives us the opportunity to plan our volumes distribution quite precisely. Everyone is asking for possibilities to extend the period of supply, in order to avoid availability gaps between the Egyptian and South African season and this is very positive news for us.”
It’s likely that overall prices will be higher this season, with some products maintaining the same price levels as last year, Dermendzhieva states: “The unstable Egyptian currency and the import difficulties, combined with the overall price increase of packaging, fertilizers and services, are showing that the prices will be higher than last season. However, to what extent is still hard to predict this early in the season, especially for Valencia. For Navel, however, the first price indications are very similar to those of last year, as we expect a normal crop with no pressure on small sizes, unlike last year.”
According to Dermendzhieva, China and Turkey are fierce competitors for the Asian markets. “We see that there is stable demand on oranges and most markets are performing very well. For lemons, the situation is quite different, due to the serious competition from China and Turkey on the Asian markets. Mandarins also fluctuate in sales and the demand varies by country significantly. It seems like Valencia oranges remain the most popular citrus from Egypt.”
“In seasons where demand exceeds supply or they are on relatively equal levels, everyone can sell almost anything, but markets are not constant, they change rapidly. That's why we believe that sustainable quality, high-end service of supply and communications will always be the most valuable ‘trend’ in our industry. No matter what the specifications of the season are, we invest in our reputation and do not compromise any of our business values and fruit standards,” Dermendzhieva concludes.
For more information:
Mariya Dermendzhieva
Triland JSC
Tel: +359898502797
Email: mariya@triland.eu