Ilenio Bastoni (photo), sales manager for Apofruit Italia, is quite satisfied with the volume of Solemio kiwis destined to the Asian market.
"The initial objective was to export 70 containers transporting 22 tons of kiwis each every year, i.e. around 1,500 tons of produce. After four months though, we have already shipped 91 containers and have therefore exported over 2,000 tons."
The new line was promoted under a new brand and with a new packaging, using livelier colours to appeal to the Asian market. The Chinese culture, in fact, associates red with joy and luck.
Various factors contributed to this success, such as rigorous growing techniques and the willingness to adapt to the needs and preferences of these markets. In addition, produce from the Southern hemisphere finished early this year, thus favouring that from Italy.
The new lid promotes the brand in stores and protects fruit during transport.
"We are now considering which other products in our portfolio can be exported to those markets. They need to have the right characteristics as the transit time is quite long (30-40 days)."
Apples and seedless grapes could be among the selected fruits.
For further information: www.apofruit.it