FROUTONEA_UK_AUGUST22

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COMPANY PAGE



MENELAOS FRESH 2ND COVER
TEX 1
VELVITA 3 In this issue
MSC 9
VARVARESOS BACKCOVER Cherries
Empty treasury



Apples
The red varieties will be slightly reduced


Grapes
The new season begins with problems



4 INTERVIEW









ÒPeaches/Nectarines




THEY TRY TO FIND PACE



The productivity increase in Imathia seems like a useless gift for the sector. Despite a weekly plan-
ning is finally able to be made, it is being seriously hindered by the low quality, the lack of work-
ers and the weak demand.


On the other hand, foreign markets are
also suffering from inflation, which is de-
creasing seriously the purchasing power of
consumers. In other words, there is no de-
mand. Next to these, there is also the issue
of the lack of workers for the harvesting
and packing plants, which will be intensi-
fied now that the operation of the canner-
ies is beginning. Thus, the rule for Imathia’s
packing plants continues to be the oper-
ation only in one shift, since even if there
is enough product for two full shifts, there
are not enough workers.

Spanish and Italian
traffickers in Imathia
The trade of Macedonian peaches and Finally, Italian and Spanish buyers have
nectarines is entering a phase where they also appeared in the plain of Imathia and in
can gain «a certain pace», as since the first other peach growing areas. It seems that
week of July in Naoussa, more efficient va- their arrival began at the end of June, since
rieties have been put into production and a earlier in the same month no related activi-
more significant volume of fruit is collect- Imathia’s packaging plants ty was reported. However, the arrival of the
ed. Thus, as reported by traders from the continue to operate in a single Spanish buyers was something to be ex-
region, it is now possible to draw up an ap- pected, as this year’s Catalan production is
proximate weekly supply schedule for cus- shift as a rule, as even if there dramatically low and the Catalans had al-
tomers. This is a step up from what was is enough product for two full ready shown their intentions at the Freskon
going on in the offices of sales managers fair. As far as the Italians are concerned, it is
until at least the end of June, when they shifts, there are not enough considered that the quantities they buy are
didn’t know what «next day would bring». workers partly resold to Spanish companies.
The problems remain The next period
Of course, this planning can now be done, The estimate that is spreading among
but at the same time it is weak in its details, people in the industry is that from mid-Ju-
since it carries all the «wounds» of this sea- ly the prices for peaches and nectarines
son. First, due to the adverse weather con- will increase. Perhaps, in fact, the devel-
ditions of the last spring, many fruits har- opment for the few good quality peaches
vested in Imathia are of poor quality and will be more favorable compared to nec-
not durable enough to travel to foreign tarines and their prices will reach close to
markets, thus ending up piling up in the do- last year’s good levels. All this, of course,
mestic market. In fact, in peaches the good assumes that the weather events will not
amounts are less than in nectarines.
further undermine the quality of the fruits.


AUGUST 2022

ÒCherries




EMPTY TREASURY



A very difficult season has been completed, with the weather on the one hand leaving a lot of
damage to the production and with the market on the other hand not to leaving many incomes
for the traders and the producers.


The harvest of the cherries will be com-
pleted the next days, since there are on-
ly few fruits left on the trees, only at the
mountainous estates of the Pella prefec-
ture. These cherries will have been har-
vested till the mid of August. However, The current bad season
as the market situation has been formed is only a negative exception
since a long time ago, with the offer from in the last five seasons,
Spain and especially from Italy to be abun-
dant, the cherries will be harvested only so it is not enough in order
because it will not be good to remain on for the producers
the trees. The low demand is a fact and
has consolidated the prices at low levels. to be disappointed so bad,
so as they to substitute
The producers sell out
Under these circumstances, the pro- the cherries with other
ducers see themselves forced to sell out that of 2017, when the commercial flow cultivations
in order not to see their fruit stay unsold of the cherries had obtained a similar bad
in their hands, while there are many fruits pace. However, the current bad season is
that are being directed to the processing only a negative exception in the last five
industry. The money that receive the pro- seasons, so it is not enough in order for the
ducers in some cases they are not enough producers to be disappointed so bad, so as difficult to send their products to the mar-
even to cover the cultivation cost, which they to substitute the cherries with other ket. Despite that, since they bought them
was very high this year, while even those cultivations. very cheap, they had bigger agility capabil-
who managed to equalize the incomes ity. In any case, the current season was not
with the costs, practically they have loss- Difficulties for the merchants good neither for them, since the cherries
es. According to some producers from Gi- Finally, the situation is not pleasant nei- has not reached where it reached at past
annitsa, the current season looks a lot like ther for the packers, as they found it very seasons.


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AUGUST 2022

6 INTERVIEW







“VISIT OUR NEW PACKING HOUSE IN CRETE”




The new season of Cretan table grapes is marked from the be-
ginning by the operation of the new, modern packing house of
Minoan Fruits, which is, in fact, the first packing house that can
be visited in Crete.














NIKOS GIANNIDAKIS

OWNER OF MINOAN FRUITS



Mr. Giannidakis, first give us the data of
the new season of Cretan grapes…
The season in Crete started in the first
week of July with the white Prime and red
Starlight grapes, while from July 20 the Our new facilities, equipped
Superior and Attica varieties are also in the to the standards of the most
market. The volume of all these early vari-
eties is estimated at 1,500 tons through- modern European packaging
out Crete. Then, from the beginning of Au- plants, come to cover the
gust, the harvest of Sultanina will also
begin, which is estimated at 10,000 tons. needs of the company’s
However, the market is “numb” due to the development since 2007,
accuracy and the war in Ukraine. As the
season dictates, there will be an outlet when it opened its first
for the market only good quality products, production unit However, the most innovative element
which will be paid a little more expensive has to do with its traffic, as the new fa-
than last year. cilities have a specially designed space to
welcome the prospective buyer, who will
Minoan Fruits, however, has had a dy- be able to inspect the quality of the prod-
namic modernization with the creation ucts himself. There will also be a special
of a new and, in fact, visitable packing tasting area and a shop selling not only the
house. products of the packing plant, but also all
Our new facilities, equipped to the stan- the agricultural products of the region for
dards of the most modern European pack- ordinary visitors.
aging plants, come to cover the needs of
the company’s development since 2007, So what is the role of new unit?
when it opened its first production unit. Mi- The new unit will receive 2,500-3,000
noan Fruits’ new packing plant will be able tons of table grapes this year, while from
to handle all fresh fruits and vegetables the winter it will also take over the man-
that do not require pre-washing, with the agement of horticulture. In the meantime
main focus on table grapes. our old unit will focus on organic products.



AUGUST 2022

“ONLY HIGH QUALITY GRAPES WILL


FIND A WAY TO THE MARKETS THIS YEAR”



Despite the problems, the cultivation of table grapes in Corinth is
generally going well. This year though it is expected that the re-
quirements for good quality, due to accuracy, will be so increased.













MARCOS LEGGAS

PRESIDENT OF A.S. PEGASOS
AGROFOOD - 7GRAPES



Mr. Leggas, how did the cultivation of the
grapes go until the start of the harvest?
In an earlier conversation I had told you
that “everything was fine, but we also
needed raifalls. Unfortunately, even in the It is likely that Prime chains of European countries will make of-
first week of July there were no rainfalls fers to consumers, supplying a fairly large
and thus the pressure on water manage- and Superior grapes will be volume of grapes from the last week of Ju-
ment remains. However, I clarify that the quickly confronted with ly. However, I believe that the Greek pro-
rest of the environmental conditions are ducers and exporters will not be able to
good. In other words, no heat wave has oc- an early arrival in the benefit substantially from this opportuni-
curred and the nights are cool. ty, as the Italians and the Spanish are com-
Sultanina market, as early ing with many grapes this year and for var-
What does all this mean for harvesting as the first week of August. ious reasons and more preferable than the
the various varieties? In this competition, Prime Greek ones.
So far, it looks like this year’s production
will be bigger than last year’s. Of course, and Superior cannot stand You seem concerned about the commer-
this can change by the end of the season, against Sultanina cial course of the product…
and we have to see how many grapes will The beginning of this season is charac-
be commercially valuable. But there is al- terized by a thirst for grapes and that is a
so the possibility that the trading calen- good thing. However, I think it is likely that
dar will be mixed up somewhat. Let me ex- what happened with apricots will happen
plain: The first cuts of the Prime variety are with grapes too. Accuracy will not allow
made by force on July 15 and almost at the na very little time will pass and the do- one to sell a lot of grapes at good prices.
same time of the Superior. However, reg- mestic market will be squeezed by many It is also a fact that accuracy, in addition to
ular harvests for these grapes take place grapes. In this domestic market compe- putting pressure on the purchasing pow-
from July 25 onwards. The point, howev- tition, Prime and Superior cannot stand er of consumers, simultaneously creates
er, is that dry heat conditions can bring the against Sultanina. high demand on the quality of their pur-
start of the Sultanina harvest as early as chases. Consequently, I don’t think there
the first week of August. This will mean What do you see in foreign markets? will be any commercial success this year
that between Prime-Superior and Sultani- In the first week of August several for grapes other than high quality.



AUGUST 2022

8 PRODUCTS







THE NEW SEASON OF KIWI




The first information reaching our magazine about the kiwi production volume of the new sea-
son, although many problems have arisen for the growers, indicate that this year will also fluctu-
ate at high levels.



The market has already
discounted a producer price
drop for new season kiwifruit,
which compared to last year
for good, quality estates, will

be around 30%












It is the beginning of July and the first from now. During this time, the weath-
information reaching the magazine about er may have other surprises for us, which
the evolution of the production volume of may affect both the quality of the fruits
kiwifruit is pleasant, as the total produc- and the final volume. But what does not
tion of kiwifruit in our country will move seem to be changing - whatever the de-
to high levels this year; in fact, the Inter- velopment of final production volume - is
professional Organization of Kiwifruit es- the willingness of traders to buy kiwifruit
timates that the production will this year at last year’s prices of 80 or 90 cents. As
should be around 400,000 tons. This esti- we have mentioned in previous reports, al-
mate is probably correct, as thousands of most all traders, Greek and Italian, lost a
new acres of kiwifruit have been planted in lot of money from the commercial trade of
the last 5 years, most of which are now in kiwis in the past year. For this reason, they
regular production. will now be very frugal in the prices they
As for the development of the quality of give to producers, but also in the quanti-
the fruits, here the news is not so pleas- ties they buy.
ant, as hail has fallen in many areas which And what prices should the traders re- pared to last year will be for good, quality
caused damage to the crop, with the area ally give, when no one is in a position to estates of around 30% .
of Xanthi having suffered the biggest blow know what the transport costs, the stor- For those estates that will not have good
so far. Along with the problems from the age costs and the packaging materials quality products, the prices will be dramat-
weather, we must also add the fact that, costs will be this winter? This question is ically lower - perhaps some of them will go
due to the lack of workers, many producers even overlapped by the great global reces- unharvested. Faced with this situation, it
have not been able to complete the thin- sion. is possible that those producers and trad-
ning of the fruit - and this will have an im- ers who have many years of good commer-
pact on the final quality of the fruit of these The conclusion cial relations with each other, will create
estates. Based on all the above, we come to the another commercial relationship this year,
conclusion that the market has already such as e.g. of liquidation, which may ulti-
Business discounted a drop in the producer price mately prove beneficial to both parties. Of
The harvest will start in about 4 months for the new season’s kiwifruit, which com- course, this remains to be seen in practice.



AUGUST 2022



10 PRODUCTS






“TYRNAVOS BRINGS


GOOD PRODUCTION TO PEARS”



Mr. Sotiris Tamposis, president of ASEPOP Tyrnavos talks about
the end of the current and the prospects of the new pear season.













SOTIRIS TAMPOSIS

PRESIDENT
OF ASEPOP TYRNAVOS





Mr. Tamposis, tell us what pear stocks
are left in Tyrnavos?
ASEPOP Tyrnavos has run out of its own
pears since June, but there are some pri-
vate refrigerators that still have product to ASEPOP Tyrnavos will have will begin in Krystallia. Finally, around Au-
sell. As it seems, these stocks will not be a good production, gust 15-20, Williams cuts will begin.
eliminated soon, that is before August, and
they will “meet” the pears of the new sea- both in terms of volume You have mentioned to us the problem
son on the market. of bacterial blight that afflicts Tyrnavos
and quality and will meet pear trees. What news is there from that
For ASEPOP Tyrnavos, what is the out- the needs of its partners front?
come of this pear season? without problems To deal with the problem, producers cut
Despite the fact that in September, branches or uproot whole trees, which, in
when we were planning the season pric- addition to loss of production, also means
es, the cost lists were much lower than in a partial loss of plant capital. The problem
March-April, we managed to have a good is mainly found in newer plantings and, un-
season and we are satisfied. fortunately, growers whose trees fall vic-
tim to bacterial blight do not always have
What production does Tyrnavos bring us the ability to renew the plantings they up-
for the new pear season? root.
The amount of Tyrnavos production was
affected by some hail and fruit drop, but Finally, is there enough manpower to
ASEPOP will have a satisfactory produc- carry out all the operations of the indus-
tion, both in terms of volume and quali- tic market only, started in the first week try smoothly?
ty, and will cover the needs of its partners of July. But the export season will be late No, there are not enough workers. Conse-
without a problem. this year as exports will start from July 20 quently, I believe that wages this year will
with the first pears of the Kosia variety. increase and, moreover, it is possible that
Can you tell us this year’s harvest calen- Then, from July 27, Santa Maria pears will the pears will be cut at a more ripe stage,
dar by variety? enter the market, while production will in- with all that this implies for their durability
The short cuts, which are for the domes- tensify around August 8, when the harvest and commercial course.


AUGUST 2022

ÒApples




THE RED VARIETIES WILL BE SLIGHTLY REDUCED




The new apple season is progressing smoothly and the first indications are that production vol-
ume will be slightly reduced in the new season in the red varieties, with the biggest losses record-
ed in the Gala variety.

workers, but even so, the job gets done.
The ‘21-’22 season was difficult for ap-
ples due to low demand, with some trad-
ers still having last year’s apples unsold,
while Italians and Poles are also reporting
similar situations.
Next to this, we must also add the in-
creased cost of cultivation, packaging and
transport, which is now not at all negligible,
while the increased cost of energy makes it
very expensive to store the products.
Faced with this climate of precision, the
logical reaction is to raise the price of the
product to cover the increased costs of pro-
duction, storage, packaging and handling.
However, if we take as an example what
has been the commercial course of apples
so far - as well as other products in gener-
al - we doubt whether the market will ac-
We are in the first week of July and the will eventually be around last year’s lev- cept to pay more for apples this year than
first information reaching our office is that els, or slightly below them. Of course, until in previous years.
the volume of production in the red vari- the harvest begins, no one knows how the Right now, the business climate is not
eties will be slightly reduced this year, weather will develop and what its conse- good at all and - most importantly - it
as in all the production areas there are quences will be on production. doesn’t look like it will get better in the
some estates with normal production and Of course, now we can’t talk about the coming months; instead, we expect it to
some others with reduced. But this loss of quality of the fruit either, as this point is get worse. It is therefore logical that the
low-yielding estates is offset by new es- also subject to weather conditions. All traffickers are «buttoned up» and march
tates coming into production, so we con- we can say is that thinning the fruit is do- with conservative moods to the places of
clude that the total volume of production ne with great difficulty due to the lack of production in September to buy apples.



FROUTONEA MAGAZINE

IS NOW ON –LINE!



Read all the latest news about the Greek sector of fresh produce
in our monthly –web English Edition of Froutonea Magazine!

[email protected]

T+30 210 48 12 212




AUGUST 2022