Roux Groenewald, CEO of Betko in Villiersdorp, has seen an early interest from Europe in Royal Gala. He attributes this to the impact of heat waves and the high cost of cooling in Europe for the national Gala offering. However, it doesn’t need to ship Royal Gala to the UK as soon as the country struggles to maintain the prices that early South African apples can fetch in other parts of the world. “Timing is a big factor. I think by the end of the season the UK and EU markets will be able to match early fruit prices in the Asian markets.”
According to Groenewald, the high energy prices this season will certainly affect fruit sales in Europe and could benefit a highly cultivated category such as apples, but there is so much competition between fruits that it is not a guarantee.
“We feel that exports from the Southern Hemisphere are decreasing due to the increased availability of controlled supplies in the Northern Hemisphere. I have spoken to some of my largest recipients in Europe and the UK and I have told them that it is not something that we want to do. The EU and the UK are the traditional markets for South Africa. It’s an easy thing, you set your schedules before the season starts, you stick to the schedule and you get your money.”
“In recent years, we’ve been trying to adapt more to selling in other markets. When you enter new markets, there’s always an adjustment period. The business models are different, there’s a bit more risk. Now we’re in that period with India and China, but I think it will work itself out. The opportunities are there.”
Source: worldnationnews.com