“We’re not interested in increasing volumes as fast as possible, we focus on keeping the quality top-notch instead.” For one Egyptian exporter, this is what the company lives by. After having their cooling rooms and packhouse expanded, the exporters are ready for the new spring onion season.
Egyptian exporter Stars of Export deal mostly in garlic and spring onions. The garlic season is behind them and so preparations for the spring onion season have begun. Mai Yassin is the export manager for Star of Export and expects a good season. “I expect the total cultivated area to be lower than last season, however it’s not clear what the volumes will be. The season starts in November and lasts until the end of March. We export to European countries, like the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. However, if we would export to the United Kingdom our season could even be extended by about a month.” Yassin says.
The upcoming season for spring onions is a very important one, as this will be the first season that Stars of Export can use their newly improved facilities for the spring onions. “We recently expanded our cooling rooms and packing house. We can now handle double the capacity in these facilities. We already made use of them during our past garlic season. Everything went well, so we expect everything to go smoothly during the spring onion season as well,” Yassin explains. “It's not without challenges though, as we do expect the costs in Egypt to be slightly higher this season. This is due to the increase of electricity and fuel costs, next to foreign currencies having decreased rated against the Egyptian pound.”
Stars of Export would like to get a stronger foothold in the UK-market. “The focus in the United Kingdom is all about pricing. This is not what we focus on as a company, as quality is everything for us. So we’re looking to see if we can press the prices down somehow without jeopardizing the quality of the produce. Spring onions are very perishable, so transportation needs to be fast and handling the produce needs to be done delicately.” Yassin says. “However it’s not just the produce that is important to us. All the improvements we make in our facilities and company will impact the quality of the employees’ environment. We intend to make their work easier and more comfortable, which is why we received a social certification.
Germany is also a big player when it comes to spring onions, but according to Yassin there is nothing to worry about for the Egyptian player. “It seems we’ve been taking turns for the past seasons. Egypt starts with the season when Germany has ended, and in turn Egypt ends their season once the German spring onions hit the market. So although they are big in spring onions, we don’t hurt each other’s potential during the seasons. We’re not worried about competition in general, our father is CEO of the company and his philosophy is growing Stars of Export step by step. Rather than trying to increase our output by 50 per cent, we try to grow about five to ten per cent per season. The true goal is to expand our brand and our name in the European market. What other countries do with their spring onions is not relevant, we believe in our own product.” Yassin concludes.
For more information:
Mai Yassin
Stars of Export
Tel: +20 111 012 1741
Email: export@starsofexport.com
www.starsofexport.com