Australian stone fruit exports gained more traction in the leadup to Chinese New Year.
"There has been a lot of rain in the growing regions of Australia," said Sam Vasala from Sai World. "Things have now improved and the quality of the cherries are fantastic, we are sourcing cherries from both Tasmania and the mainland."
"Due to all the rain which has affected the quality of the fruit in a few regions we have been very selective this season and exported much less than we normally would, but what we have exported has been excellent. Quality over quantity I guess."
This is where an exporter can add value for the buyer and grower according to Sam. "If you are a grower and have your regular sales channels you don't have much leeway in a difficult year. Having someone else to sell your fruit has an advantage in that we know which markets to put the fruit into. Right quality - right buyer - right price."
"We sent grapes to Asia in time for Chinese New Year, again some areas have been affected with rain and hail but, on what’s not affected, the quality is looking good. We are still exporting peaches, nectarines and plums into Asia and will export the first of this season's lemons to Japan next week."
Sai World have their own citrus orchards in Riverland, South Australia and according to Sam the production is looking good. We want to focus on quality over quantity. 
"We also grow Japanese pumpkins for the Japanese market, and pumpkins for Singapore, we should start the export in around a month. There is always good demand as we are the only ones growing the pumpkins at this time."
For more information:
Sam Vasala
Sai World Pty Ltd
Tel: +61 (07) 5641 2217
Mob: +61470406579
Email: sam@saiworld.com.au
www.saiworld.com.au