The frozen strawberry market is evolving quickly this season, says Reham Suhry, managing director of Egyptian strawberry exporter Egyberries: "Honestly, it's been a demanding season. On paper, everything looks fine. Acreage is there, volumes are there, but when you go deeper, consistency is the real challenge. The weather has been unpredictable, and that always shows in the fruit. For me, the biggest shift this season is very clear: the market is not short of strawberries, it's short of strawberries you can truly rely on. We stay very close to the source and work directly with selected farms, supervise the process, and make sure we can trace every lot back to its origin. Because in the end, trust is built on details."
The conflict in the Middle East has also impacted the operation of Egyberries, Suhry explains. "The impact is real, even if it's not always obvious at first. We've seen fuel prices increase by around 30%, electricity prices by 15 to 20%, and in some cases, packaging costs have risen close to 50%, mainly driven by currency and input costs. At the same time, buyers are more cautious. Decisions take longer, which means we're holding stock for longer periods. This increases both storage and financing costs. So today, we're not just managing the harvest, we're managing cost, timing, and uncertainty all together."
© EgyBerries
Although Egyberries doesn't make use of the Strait of Hormuz directly, Suhry still pays close attention to the situation: "The Strait of Hormuz is something everyone in the industry is watching closely. Even if our shipments don't pass through it directly, it affects global energy prices and shipping behaviour. Any instability there creates a chain reaction: higher costs, more cautious logistics, and slower decisions. Right now, things are moving, but you can clearly feel that everyone is operating carefully. We had to simplify and stay focused to deal with this new situation."
"Instead of trying to do more, we decided to do things better," Suhry continues. "Fewer farms, but stronger control. More attention to detail. More discipline in how we manage quality and traceability. We also became more selective with who we work with. Because today, you need partners who understand that compliance is not something you negotiate—it's something you build from the beginning. For us, it's about long-term thinking, not short-term wins."
Suhry doesn't expect the situation to change course any time soon, with prices being the main focus for many buyers: "I believe the coming weeks will continue in the same direction, pressure on costs, and variability in supply. But what is becoming more obvious is the gap between expectation and reality. Some buyers still focus mainly on price, but under the current EU regulations, cheap products often don't deliver the result they expect, whether in quality, consistency, or compliance. And this is where experience really makes the difference."
"We are also seeing some positive signals on the political side. There are indications that Egypt is playing a role in mediation between the United States and Iran, which could bring some temporary stability. Of course, from a business point of view, we remain cautious. We plan based on what we see on the ground, not on expectations. Today, the real value is not in finding strawberries; it's in securing strawberries that are compliant, consistent, and reliable. Everything else comes with hidden costs," Suhry concludes.
For more information:
Reham Suhry
Egyberries
Tel: +20 114 542 0280
[email protected]
www.egyberries.com
