Summer fruit sales are currently under pressure. "On Friday, when the sun was shining, there was still some momentum in the market. But now that the weather forecast has turned more negative, things have quieted down considerably," says Pieter de Ruiter of 4Fruit Company from Ridderkerk. "No one is taking any positions right now. Customers are only buying what they absolutely need and are trying to stretch their existing stock as much as possible. Everyone is sitting back and waiting to see what happens."
© 4 Fruit Company
© 4 Fruit Company"Melon supply is more than sufficient, and prices have now dropped to painfully low levels. Galia and Cantaloupe melons are going for €3.50–€4.00. Watermelons are at €0.45–€0.55, so nothing is exciting there," says the importer. "Spain itself has beautiful weather, which supports good local consumption, but they still need to export their volumes, and that quickly ends up in the Netherlands, Germany, and Poland—where trade is sluggish due to poor weather and the holiday period."
"As for other stone fruit, the season from Murcia is now wrapping up. Sales of apricots, peaches, and nectarines from Murcia were difficult for quite a while, but now Llerida has been active for some time, and that season is going well in terms of quality and is achieving good prices. Apricots and paraguayos are fetching €12–€13 for the double-A grade, peaches are priced between €12–€12.50, and nectarines are in the same range. Spanish cherries are also still performing well. But fruits that are really peaking in price? I wish that were the case!"
For more information:
Pieter de Ruiter
4Fruit Company
Handelsweg 30
2988 DB Ridderkerk
+31 (0) 180 641902
[email protected]
www.4fruitcompany.nl
