The new Egyptian strawberry season has begun around two weeks earlier than last year. "On 10 November, we already had the first strawberries, but now we are running into the same problem as last year: there are too few large aircraft available," says Alain Tulpin of logistics service provider Tulpin Group, which specialises in air freight, particularly Egyptian strawberries destined for the UK and Germany.
© Nik Deblauwe
"It's a problem we have seen increasingly in recent years with the growth of e-commerce," he continues. "The small charter aircraft, which we call 'baby charters', can barely carry 20 tons. The larger aircraft from Egypt can handle 60 tons, and a Jumbo or a Boeing 777 can even handle 100 tons. But because of the situation between the US and China, those aircraft are once again fully booked with e-commerce from China. As a result, the problem remains the same as last year. From 1 January, Belgium will introduce a €2 tax on every e-commerce parcel. But that is not going to stop people; it is just a symbolic gesture. E-commerce keeps growing, and we will have to deal with that."
There is certainly no lack of demand, Alain adds. "The market is moving very fast. Demand is huge. Markets in Europe and England are currently empty. In Belgium and the Netherlands, they mainly supply their own supermarkets, which creates good opportunities for Egyptian supply. Prices are also considerably higher than last year, around 10 euros per crate, which is positive. A grower must be able to earn something; otherwise, it stops."
Delays due to inspections
"The harvest in Egypt is also good. We receive a lot through Ostend, Hahn, and Frankfurt airports. Maastricht, Liège, and a bit through Brussels as well. Amsterdam not yet, but that will probably follow next month," he explains. "The strikes caused delays, but as of today, the situation is back under control. Even so, things are still not running smoothly. There are still many delays due to inspections. Since 30 October, Europe has required that all soft fruit from outside the EU undergo 100 percent phytosanitary inspection."
"Everything now has to be checked, whereas before it was often based on documents. That causes delays everywhere. It applies not only to strawberries from Egypt, but also to blueberries from Morocco, and in fact to all countries outside the EU. England used to release everything overnight, but despite Brexit, England often adopts such measures anyway. Now everything must be inspected at the quayside. That creates significant delays."
Dominant in frozen food market
The entrepreneur also notes that Egypt is slowly but surely dominating the frozen strawberry market. "Egypt grows mainly for the frozen segment and, in recent years, has invested heavily. The country is now the largest supplier of frozen strawberries in the world. This year, volumes will exceed 500,000 tons. In the frozen market, Egypt is increasingly taking over from Poland. Wages in Poland are rising, which makes production more expensive. In Egypt, production costs are lower, and the population is growing extremely fast. When I first went there in 1998, there were 62 million people; now there are 120 million. That is enormous growth."
"They are also building three large cold stores to keep their own product, making them less dependent on buyers who push for low prices. This gives them more control. They can store and sell when the customer needs it, instead of freezing and shipping everything immediately."
For more information:
Alain Tulpin
Tulpin Group
Kapellestraat 2A bus 6
8460 Oudenburg, Belgium
Tel: +32 (0) 59 80 66 33
[email protected]
www.tulpingroup.eu
