Van Ooijen Citrus has Egyptian oranges and mandarins on offer again. Director Gerry van Ooijen welcomes this range expansion despite these products' complexities. Margins are not always favorable, given the competition and many suppliers. Still, the Dutch company likes Egypt's service and the citrus quality, which meets their standards. Van Ooijen Citrus specializes in citrus and, besides Egypt, imports fruit from countries like Spain, Uruguay, Argentina, South Africa, and Israel.
Egypt supplies citrus such as Valencia, Salustiana, and Tango, with their Tangos being of similar quality to those of Morocco. The company, however, does not mainly focus on Egyptian citrus. Since it is in high demand, Van Ooijen Citrus is adding these products to its assortment to serve all customers. The Egyptian citrus market is fragmented, though, as last season showed.
Egypt shifted its focus from the Asian to the European market, which resulted in a surplus of oranges. That put pressure on prices, affecting both Spanish and Dutch growers and importers. For Dutch importers, the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) added an extra cost for sampling, further complicating the situation.
Gerry notes the NVWA sampling costs reached absurd heights, undermining the trade's profitability. He suggests importers do their own laboratory testing rather than relying on the NVWA, which is often slow in delivering results. Gerry, nonetheless, sees a bright spot in the future, especially with the construction of juice factories in Egypt inspired by the Brazilian model. That could ease the market, as it will promote juice production and decrease the prevalence of lower-quality citrus.
Also, Egypt's citrus acreage keeps growing, and, jokes Gerry, the pyramids might even have to give way to orange orchards. Despite water shortage challenges, Egypt has no problems cultivating citrus. Logistics are well managed, with containers usually arriving on time within 10 to 14 days. Van Ooijen Citrus continues to distinguish itself with products such as Orri and Minneola, available almost year-round, although not from Egypt. Orri comes from Israel, Spain, Peru, South Africa, Argentina, and Uruguay, among others, while Minneola originates in the United States.
Van Ooijen Citrus, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in October, is optimistic about the Egyptian citrus supply and the broader citrus market.
Van Ooijen Citrus BV
Handelsweg 149
2988 DC Ridderkerk
Tel.: +31 (0)180 655 555
[email protected]
www.vanooijencitrus.nl