Earlier, WAPA published figures regarding traded apple and pear stocks in Europe. In the apple category, Belgium had a positive forecast, with a 28,6% increase. Lower volumes are, however, expected for the new top fruit crop. "This year is already an alternate year for top fruit growers. They have 10-15% lower volumes," says Laurent De Smedt, BelOrta's Top Fruit Head of Division. "We had a heatwave at the beginning of August. That resulted in a 20-30% reduction, due to sun damage, in certain orchards too."
Laurent thinks these smaller volumes will mean no apple exports to other countries. "We can easily sell these volumes on the Belgian market. We hear that, in Poland, the new season's quality is disappointing. There's more Class II fruit." All these developments influence prices. "The apples are already considerably costlier than last year. Elstar, Gala, and Jonagold prices are expected to remain high."
Apples
There aren't only lower volumes. Laurent has noticed many apple orchards disappearing in Belgium. That makes for less apple total area. Many growers have also switched varieties. "For example, Kanzi acreage has grown even more. This is a Belgian club variety. That increase is at the cost of more traditional varieties like Elstar and Jonagold."
"Farmers choosing to switch to these kinds of new varieties all has to do with the competition from Poland. One out of three apples on the European market comes from there, after all. So, here in the Belgian sector, we use these varieties to focus more on quality and taste experience. We can, therefore, focus more on a diverse assortment. That's in addition to bulk apples."
Pears
In contrast to apples, pears remain an important Belgian export product. These pears also fared better during the recent heatwave. "The peel quality is currently excellent. But the sizes are slightly smaller than last year. We think this year's crop will be in line with that of last year."
"Conference pears remain the most important cultivation variety," admits the HOD. "But, here too, we're putting more effort into new varieties. Particularly the Durondeau must make way for new, blushed pear varieties. We see there is special interest in our two new red varieties - Fred and Red Angel."
The pears' sales market has become more widespread since 2014. "The 2014 Russian boycott was a wake-up call for us. We shouldn't have focused so much on one sales market. Smaller streams have replaced the heavy stream to Russia to different destinations in recent years. Germany is a good example. We have grown our market position there, from a small 13% to 40%. Pear exports to other regions have also increased. These include East Asia and Central and Eastern Europe. There's more diversity in both farming and trading. The risks are, therefore, more spread out."
Sorting
Apple and pear volumes remain crucial for BelOrta. But, they also want to guarantee these products' quality. "That's why we opt to sort these fruits centrally. We can then make sure it meets our standards. We can also give our clients different kinds of packaging, from cardboard sleeves to loose, crated products. This allows us to emphasize Belgian apples and pears' local character on the market," Laurent concludes.
For more information:
Laurent De Smedt
Top Fruit Division Head
BelOrta
Tel: +32 (0) 126 70 260
Email: Laurent.desmedt@belorta.be
Website: www.belorta.be