African consumers’ appetite for Pink Lady® apples is being met by the licensing of twelve importers serving Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda, as well as two importers in Mauritius and three in Réunion this year.At mid-October 2017, export volumes of Pink Lady® apples to Africa stood at 4,469,875kg, of which more than 60% go to the East African licensed importers. Large volumes of Pink Lady® also go to Senegal, Nigeria and the Ivory Coast.
TopFruit is the Master Licensee for Pink Lady® in Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, with 65 licensed packhouses in South Africa. The first Pink Lady cartons were exported to Africa in 2013. Its long shelf life plays a key role in its popularity in African markets, where logistical and infrastructural problems sometimes interfere with cold chain management.
“There is definitely a growing demand for Pink Lady®. Customers in Africa want good quality and they recognise the Pink Lady® flowing heart on the apple sticker and the branded cartons as good quality. So they are demanding it,” says Liza Matthews, TopFruit's marketing manager.
Street market in Nairobi, Kenya (Photos supplied by TopFruit)
She often visits African fruit markets and has found that, especially in East Africa, not only do most formal retailers stock their apples but many street hawkers too.
Pink Lady® is marketed as an aspirational brand. Calla du Toit, chairperson of the South African Pink Lady® Association (SAPLA) has compared the cultivar to an iPhone in terms of its desirability among African consumers. “For these consumers it’s not enough to have a phone, they want an iPhone. Likewise they don’t just want to eat an apple, they want a Pink Lady®,” he has told Landbouweekblad.According to Hortgro, the acreage under Pink Lady® has slightly increased to 2,372ha last year, which translates to a 10% contribution to the total apple area in South Africa, placing it in fifth place among apple cultivars.
Last year 1.98 million x 12.5kg cartons were exported worldwide (SAPLA’s figures) with lower volumes expected of the current season due to drought.
"TopFruit feels that new selections of varieties such as the Rosy Glow tree (which is a variety that produces apples that can be sold as Pink Lady® when meeting the required quality specifications) will be those planted going forward as they will improve packouts and have targeted marketing campaigns behind them," Liza Matthews says.
For more information:Liza Matthews
TopFruit
Tel: +27 21 874 1033
Email: [email protected]