"It will admittedly be a very demanding year for the commercial departments of apricot companies across Europe. I would even say a difficult one. There is overproduction everywhere. We expect strong competition, primarily from the Spanish, but also from the Turks and the Italians," stresses the Greek exporter Mr. Diamantis Milinis, owner of Sun Fruits from Halkidiki, regarding the new apricot season.
© Sun Fruits
As he explains, there is overproduction both in Greece in general and in his own region: "The harvest will begin according to its normal schedule, that is, around May 20. The fruit on the trees is in excellent condition, and only in the Polygyros area have we recorded hail damage. Overall, we are heading for overproduction this year in Halkidiki as well, except for the Tirynthos variety, which experienced significant problems during the fruit set period and will not yield large volumes this year."
© Sun Fruits
"We are starting δυνατά with a basket of red varieties such as Maya Cot, Priscia, Tsunami, and the red varieties of CEBAS. Then we will continue with Lady Cot, Bebekou, and Tirynthos. I would like to emphasize that despite the large production, we will have good sizes across all varieties, as thinning was carried out properly by the growers. At this point, the varieties that have proven their production potential and resistance to sharka are Priscia, Lady Cot, and Magic. On the other hand, as you know, our sector is gradually leaving behind Tirynthos and Bebekou, as well as some new red varieties that failed to convince us of their value."
© Sun Fruits
So far, the prices at which the season will start have not yet been determined, but it is considered certain that they will be low. "Prices, obviously, have not yet been finalized, but from the discussions we are having with supermarket chains, it appears we are talking about low to very low prices, and clearly, there can be no comparison with last year, when there was no production. The main issue this year is to sell all these products. In any case, prices are still under negotiation. However, all production factors have become more expensive. I estimate that our costs have increased by 15–20% compared to last season," Mr Milinis concludes.
For more information:
Diamantis Milinis
Sun Fruits
Tel: +30 237 303 2326
Mob: +30 697 889 8374
Email: [email protected]
http://www.sunfruits.gr/en/
