The new summer fruit season kicked off a few hours ago at the Fe.Vi Frutta wholesale company, which has been operating in Basilicata for 27 years and boasts 500 suppliers mainly located in Basilicata, Calabria, and Apulia. Commercialisation will continue until late autumn with later-ripening products such as plums and peaches.
"The first Mogador apricots and Flariba nectarines have already arrived at their destination," explains Rocco Viggiano, one of the founders. "In the days just prior, we had warned our customers that the start of harvesting would be very imminent. There is optimism and excitement about the new fruit and vegetable products, after months when strawberries were the absolute novelty. The first greenhouse products enable us to satisfy the main markets in Central and Northern Italy, supplying them with 24 packages each in addition to the daily strawberry orders. Volumes will tend to increase gradually as the open field crops come into production as well."
Rocco Viggiano
The effects of the weather are being felt especially by apricots. "Producers tell us that, for early varieties such as Mogador, there is a drop of up to 50% due to late frosts. Yields have also dropped due to the rainfall and high humidity of recent weeks, which has contributed to a greater development of fungal diseases."
"We count at least 70 producers of apricots, peaches, nectarines, Saturn peaches, plums, and Percoca peaches, covering over 150 hectares in total. We are not concerned when it comes to commercialisation, but we do fear the shortage of water in the local dams. The significant water deficit, measurable in millions of cubic metres of water, could compromise the harvesting season for cultivars currently in the swelling and/or veraison stage."
For more information:
FE.VI.FRUTTA S.R.L.
Via Bellini,10
75025 Policoro (MT) - Italy
+39 0835 902998
[email protected]
[email protected]