"Apricots from Malatya always have a brix in excess of 20"

At Van Dijk Foods there are at the moment, plenty of Turkish apricots and cherries in the assortment. The cherries will be available until the end of July and the apricots until the second week of August. According to Kastriot Cena these are the nicest apricots from the Malatya region. "They are also called sugar apricots because they are so sweet. The unique taste and the yellow-orange appearance appeals to many people. The area Malatya is in the South east of Turkey. The area is known for its apricot orchards, which grow well in the fertile soil along the tributaries of the Euphrates. Apricots from Malatya are mainly dried, but a certain share is also destined for the fresh market."

Left quality responsible Moustapha El Hassan and right sales manager
Kastriot Cena

Export 200 tons per annum
According to a spokesman of Alanar, the supplier from Turkey, the brix content of the apricots is always above 20. "It varies between 21 and 25, therefore one is slightly sweeter than the other. The season this time started more than five weeks earlier than last year. The second week of June the first apricots were already on the market. This season we produced 800 tons and we expect a production of 2,000 tons in 2016."

"We export about 200 tons to Europe annually. The most important buyers are Germany, the United Kingdom and Belgium. About 85% of the total production in Malatya is used for drying and the remainder is for the fresh market. There are also already special orchards for the fresh production, even then not every apricot is suitable for the fresh market. Quite a selection process is at the basis."

Alanar
The apricots and cherries are marketed by Van Dijk Foods under the Alanar brand. "The prices of the apricots are stable," Kastriot says. "The big difference with apricots from other countries is the calibre. The apricots are small in size, but the real connoisseur knows that it is not possible to equal the taste."

For more information:
Kastriot Cena
Van Dijk Foods Belgium
Importcentrum ECFG Brussels
112/152, Werkhuizenkaai
Magazijn 23-24
1000 Brussels
Tel: +32 2 245 75 26
Fax: +32 2 245 88 07
www.vdfb.be
sales@vdfb.be