“Fruitness, Enjoy it!” Autumn focus on pears

This autumn will feature a focus on pears by “Fruitness, Enjoy it!”, the project promoted by Italy's CSO Fruit&Vegetable services centre and co-financed by the European Union and the Italian Ministry of Agriculture with the goal of promoting Italian fruit and vegetables in Germany, Denmark, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Starting shortly, a series of promotional events will take place in various supermarkets in these countries, all focused in particular on one of the stars of the fruit sector at this time of year: the pear.

Pears possess numerous virtues from a health point of view, and by carrying out dedicated promotion activities in the main supermarkets in these five countries the Fruitness campaign aims to increase consumer awareness of the benefits of regular pear consumption for all members of the family.

And the benefits are indeed many! It's rich in natural sugars, but also has a low calorie content (roughly 100 calories in an average-sized 160 gramme pear), which is also a reason why pears are recommended for diabetics and all those who don't want to give up the pleasures of a sweetly juicy snack without damaging their health. Another plus: every pear has a high fibre content, which assists intestinal regularity and helps keep cholesterol levels down. An average-size pear also contains roughly 210 milligrams of potassium, an important element in sustaining muscle contraction (and therefore exercise and sport), nerve transmission and protein metabolisation. Last but not least, pears also contain plentyl vitamin C (roughly 7 mg per pear), excellent for maintaining a youthful skin and boosting the immunity system.

Meanwhile, during the 2014 edition of Prognosfruit, the annual conference devoted to estimates of international apple and pear production, held early in August in Istanbul, statistics and forecasts for this year were presented and analysed. Italy emerged again as Europe's top pear producer, with a forecast of 707,000 tons, slightly down (- 3%) on 2013. Spain has the next highest volume, with a forecast of 371,000 tons for 2014. The harvest reduction in Spain, however, is much more dramatic: - 8% compared to 2013 and - 9% compared to the last three years. The bronze medal goes to Holland which, unlike the majority of European countries, actually shows an increase in production, with 336,000 tons forecast for 2014: + 3% compared to 2013 and + 17% on the last three years.

The “Fruitness, Enjoy it!” project was first launched in 2006, and as well as pears focuses on peaches, nectarines, kiwis, apricots and plums. In these eight years, 35 million contacts have been made with the www.fruitness.eu/ website, notching up over 9.2 million individual users per month. This figure is complemented by a further 25 million contacts through traditional Press Office and Public Relations activities, and 10 million through banner campaigns in sector websites.

For further information: www.fruitness.eu