The apple season has been a mixed bag so far, but there are no significant complaints for Polish apple exporter Galster, says Mateusz Wajnert, head of sales for the company: "There is no reason to be overly optimistic about the current apple season, but simultaneously, we can't really complain. We see positives and we see negatives. A big plus would be the reputation of Polish apples as a whole improving every season. Customers have told me that we have made real progress, and they weren't just talking about our company Galster, but Polish apples in their entirety. Our apples have become more and more competitive. Our reputation in many world ports is improving as well."
Wajnert emphasizes that the timing of the season seems to be shifting due to climate change, and the best quality apples are picked earlier than before. "Availability for apples that are suited for long transit is very limited. We were done with long shipments by the end of January, but in the past, we usually stopped these long shipments around the end of March. The climate is changing and we have to adapt to the new conditions. For example, we need to be ready to pick apples much sooner than was required before. The best quality Royal Gala was picked around the 20th of August, while in previous years the best quality was harvested in September."
Looking at the season, Galster has been able to send steady shipments to their clients, despite the overall lower production in Poland: "Overall, we were able to send many shipments to our old clients in the Middle East, as well as a couple of containers to Vietnam, India and some other markets. However, with the current situation, we're focusing on the European market. We did not reclassify a batch of apples from Class I to industrial apples to shift towards the processing industry, but we did see a larger percentage of industry apples during packing in general. We are pleased that the NFC juice segment in particular is growing."
The cold stores of Galster haven't been emptied just yet, and the export season is expected to continue for a few more months, Wajnert states. "For Galster, our cold stores are only slightly less filled than they were around the same time in the previous season. However, in the north of Poland, I can see that growers have significantly lower volumes in their controlled atmosphere chambers. We have not been impacted as much and are focused on the Red Jonaprince variety right now. We also have some small volumes with Idared, Red Delicious and Golden. I don't foresee any changes, we want to finish the season around the end of May, in order to be ready for our sweet cherries season."
For more information:
Mateusz Wajnert
Galster Sp. z o.o.
Tel: +48 660 042 551
Email: mateusz.wajnert@galster.pl
www.galster.pl