The wholesale price for “Moldova” variety of table grapes on the Moldovan market has decreased by 1-2 MDL/kg average, to 12 MDL/kg ($0.68/kg) since the beginning of December.

According to table grapes growers, traders offer 12-13 MDL/kg for “Moldova” variety of the best quality. At the same time, local retailers pay even less for grapes of this variety – 8-10 MDL/kg ($0.45-0.56/kg). According to the market players, this is due to several reasons.

Firstly, the average Moldovan consumer prefers to buy grapes not in supermarkets, but on markets or trade stands even at the beginning of winter: there is still more assortment, and he can selexct the products himself. Supermarkets usually quickly switch to working with imported grapes in the cold season, mainly white and pink varieties. It is white grapes that dominate in the main supermarket and mini-market chains in Chisinau in December this year, but still mainly of local production. There are noticeably fewer Moldova grapes in supermarkets, and their quality is low, with retail price being 15-17 MDL/kg ($0.85-0.96/kg). This is about half the price of seedless white grapes.

Secondly, according to the representatives of the Association of Producers and Exporters of Table Grapes of the Republic of Moldova, about 1-2 thousand tonnes of export-grade “Moldova” table grapes remain in the storages of growers and trading enterprises. Some of them considered it unprofitable to sell them now, given the downtrend. They probably hope to sell better quality grapes in January on the EU market.

Сообщение Why is “Moldova” variety of table grapes getting cheaper on the Moldovan market? появились сначала на EastFruit.

A record high volume of peaches and nectarines is exported from Georgia this year. As of August 5, it reached 24 thousand tons. The Minister of Agriculture of Georgia Levan Davitashvili announced this in Kakheti, where he met with local farmers, representatives of the refrigeration industry and exporters in the village of Chumlaki, Gurjaani region, Novosti-Georgia writes.

“We have a successful season this year. A record volume of peaches and nectarines is exported. At the moment, the volume of exported products is 24 thousand tons. I think the season in Kakheti will end successfully. The export from Shida Kartli has already started and will last for another month. This is the result of our consistent policy,” Davitashvili said.

According to him, the state has eliminated weaknesses in the supply chain – product quality and infrastructure issues, lack of refrigeration equipment.

“Several years ago, there was only one farm, and today there are more than 40 refrigeration farms in Chumlaki alone. The establishment of infrastructure is co-financed by the state. All this ensures the competitiveness of Georgian peaches in export markets,” Davitashvili said.

With government support, a green corridor principle operates, through which goods freely enter the Verkhniy Lars checkpoint on the border with Russia.

For the harvesting of peaches in Kakheti, workers are also hired from other regions of Georgia

Сообщение Record volumes of peaches and nectarines exported from Georgia появились сначала на EastFruit.

According to the EastFruit Central Asian team, quite unexpected and dramatic changes in the fruit market have begun to take place in the region. The thousand-year-old traditions of high consumption of dried fruits in the region began to give way to new trends. The younger generation prefers fresh fruit even in the off-season, which leads to price anomalies. Primarily, it is noticeable in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

For example, spring frosts this year led to the loss of a significant part of apricots for drying, but this had little effect on their prices. Bakhtiyor Abduvokhidov, international consultant at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), believes that the reason is a decrease in demand for dried fruits, primarily in the domestic market.

There are several reasons for it. First of all, new varieties and technologies for growing fruits emerge that can significantly extend the season of their fresh sale. This means that fresh fruits are available.

The second important factor is an increase in the level of income of the population, which allows them to pay more for fruit. This, in turn, justifies investments in new technologies for their cultivation and the introduction of new varieties.

The third factor is the dynamic development of modern technologies for storing fresh fruit. Fruit storage facilities with controlled atmosphere (RGS) and their variations, such as ULO, CA, DCA, etc., are not new to Central Asia. These technologies, in turn, allow preserving quality of table grapes, apples and other fruits almost throughout the year. The same fruits that are not subject to long-term storage can be stored for several weeks. A good example is cherries, which, in the case of hydrocooling and modified atmosphere bags (MAP) bags, can be stored in the fruit storage for up to two months without losing quality!

Another important point is the health benefits of consuming fresh fruit. This became especially noticeable with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, when sales of some fruits, especially those high in vitamin C, skyrocketed. It has calmed down since then, but health-conscious consumers still prefer fresh fruit.

The fifth factor is the liberalization of international trade, which allows to reduce price fluctuations and increase the supply of fresh fruits in the markets of all countries of the region. Uzbekistan and Tajikistan are good examples. There has been almost no trade between these countries for many years. However, it has been actively developing in recent years. This year, for example, Tajikistan, which suffered much less frost damage than Uzbekistan, is actively supplying fresh stone fruits and berries to the neighboring country.

Does this mean that the traditional drying of apricot, which we showed in the video “Dried apricots – how are they grown, harvested, dried and sold in Tajikistan ” is becoming a thing of the past? This is most likely the case. However, this does not mean that dried fruit is unnecessary. The global trade in dried fruits tends to decline, but high-quality products will always be in great demand.

Сообщение Dried fruits lose their leading position to fresh fruit market in Central Asia появились сначала на EastFruit.

In an hour and a half interview with EastFruit about the specifics of doing business in fruit and vegetables in Sub-Saharan Africa, Artem Gudkov, co-founder of Global Ukrainian Distribution, Investment and Trading Company Limited (GUDIT), revealed several surprising aspects of the region’s fruit and vegetable business.

First of all, attention is drawn to the high price of fresh apples, which the locals consider an exotic fruit. The prices for this fruit, traditional and common for Ukraine, Moldova and other countries of the region, reach $1 per piece, which is about 10 times more expensive than the retail price for an apple in Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia now.

However, selling apples to this region is not so easy, because, according to Artem Gudkov, “cold logistics, both cooling and freezing, is a real disaster in Sub-Sahara Africa. However, whoever can build a refrigeration chain in Africa will control the market and it will not be as expensive as it might seem at first glance. Those who already have their own cold logistics systems in the region have onerous terms of cooperation for suppliers,” Artem explains.

The co-founder of GUDIT, who lives permanently in Tanzania, believes that it is possible to sell very large volumes of apples in this region if you want to and invest time and effort. Indeed, according to him, the locals are very fond of this fruit, but the size of the market is limited by the high retail price for them. The reason is that the margin of the importers who control the refrigeration chain is prohibitively high with competition in this segment still at minimal levels.

The expert believes that for the successful sale of apples in Tanzania and other countries of the region, it is necessary to open its own refrigerated warehouses and register a business in this country, as well as hire at least 150 people who will sell apples literally “on every corner”. According to him, the locals prefer green apple varieties, although there are also red ones on sale. Supermarkets do not yet have a large share in the sales of food products, and “bazaars and mini-markets govern it entirely.”

“To successfully sell to Africa, you need to sell in Africa,” Artem Gudkov says. To cover the costs of cold logistics and on-site promotion, according to him, it is possible to set a low margin (5-7% should be enough), profiting on the exports of apples, which will reduce their price and dramatically increase their sales. The expert also noted that the investment climate in the country is quite favourable, and corruption has dropped sharply in recent years. Now if the documents are all right, customs clearance of imported products goes quickly and without any delays or problems and this is especially important for fresh fruit and vegetables.

According to Andriy Yarmak, an economist at the Investment Department of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), who interviewed Artem Gudkov, Ukraine is already selling apples to Sub-Saharan Africa, although in a relatively small volume – only 147 tons last year. At the same time, he singled out Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria and Mauritius among the largest importers of fruit and vegetables in the region. Important markets are also Botswana, Namibia, Mauritania, Mozambique, Mali, Angola.

Who buys apples in Africa? According to Artem Gudkov, both foreigners and residents buy apples in Sub-Sahara Africa – after all, this is exotic for them and a kind of a status symbol, too. Apples are mostly sold in packages of 3-5 pieces each but can be sold apiece as well.

Artem Gudkov’s interview with Andriy Yarmak for EastFruit is below.

Сообщение Apples at $1 apiece – how to successfully sell apples to Sub-Saharan Africa? появились сначала на EastFruit.

The Georgian company GlenBerries LLC, a producer of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables, has launched a new development project for 117 hectares of greenhouses in the Khoni municipality of the Imereti region in Western Georgia. Here, the company will grow vegetables and fruits as well as create enterprises for their processing and flash-freezing.

Rafael Magalashvili, the co-founder and executive director of GlenBerries, told EastFruit that the company has already acquired the land. The development project will be implemented in stages. In 2021, it is planned to equip greenhouses on 52 hectares and start construction of the second, larger enterprise. The total cost of the project is 30 million lari ($9.1 million) according to preliminary estimates.

Read also: Georgian Glenberries: large order from the United States for frozen vegetables and plans to expand the raw material base

Before the project in Imereti, all production facilities of the company were located in the Kareli municipality of the Shida Kartli region. In 2018, with government support, GlenBerries opened an enterprise that included refrigerated storage designed to store 1200 tons of fruits and vegetables annually with flash-freezing equipment, which made it possible to process 10 tons of products daily as well as other relevant infrastructure. In various villages of the municipality where the company’s land is located, it uses greenhouse technology of cellophane tunnels (hothouse with protective insect screens) and, in the open field, it grows strawberries as well as various vegetables used for raw materials in its processing enterprise. Currently, a total of 31 hectares are allocated for strawberries and a few more hectares for vegetables. At the moment, the construction of greenhouses for another 10 hectares is underway.

Read also: Dugili co-founder thinks Georgian cider could conquer local and world markets

The end products for the company are frozen fruits and vegetables (using flash-freezing) which nearly 100% of products are exported. The main export markets are the United States and Israel.

Mr Magalashvili said the past year for the company was difficult. The main problems arose not with the sale of products, but with their production due to a shortage of raw materials.

“2020 was a very bad year for us. Naturally, our raw materials alone are not enough for our production and we purchase them from local farmers. Last year, we were unable to purchase enough raw materials of the proper quality and quantity to fulfil all available orders from the United States and Israel, with which we have established long-term cooperation. Taking into account this problem, we will try to expand our own raw material base as much as possible. Therefore, we are now building new greenhouses with an area of ​​10 hectares in Shida Kartli, which will be ready very soon, and we plan to develop 52 hectares in Imereti this year,” said Rafael Magalashvili.

Due to the high demand for frozen strawberry exports, a portion of the new 117 hectares will be allocated specifically for strawberries. “Also, we will plant blueberries there as our frozen blueberries are also in great demand and fresh berries are expensive on the local market. We plan to grow broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, and other vegetables in the new territory,” notes Rafael Magalashvili.

Project completion for an onion and garlic processing facility turned out to be a problem for the company. The final products were to be peeled, packaged and frozen vegetables. The company planned to commission this factory and the building of which has already been completed. But at the end of 2020, the company is still awaiting a bank loan of 3.5 million lari ($1.1 million) required to complete the project. “We are currently working on preparing the guarantees required by the banks,” said the co-founder of GlenBerries.

Сообщение Georgian company GlenBerries launches big development project for greenhouses and flash-freezing facility появились сначала на EastFruit.