The situation of the Italian pear sector is not one of the best, and it has been like that for the past 3-4 years. While the national production used to be enough for the domestic market up until a few years ago, it has now become necessary to import produce from abroad. This is confirmed by Albano Bergami, owner of a company that deals with production and commercialization and one of the leading Italian experts of the pear sector.
"In just a few years, insects, diseases and frost have brought the pear sector to its knees, especially when it comes to the Abate variety typical of Emilia Romagna. It would have been unthinkable to import large quantities of pears up until a few years ago while now, instead, we are seeing produce from Chile, South Africa and Argentina arrive increasingly early when it only used to reach us in late spring or early summer."
For Bergami, it is not "normal" for Italy to import Conference pears from the Netherlands and Belgium, and it is rather a sign that something is not working on a domestic level.
"I imported excellent Abate pears from Chile already one month ago, as the domestic ones were lacking or low quality," intervenes wholesaler Daniele Di Mauro, who commercializes pears in northern Italy.
Centro Servizi Ortofrutticoli (CSO) also confirms that the national production used to be enough to meet domestic demand and that 20% was exported. But it is no longer so.
"During the previous 2021/22 campaign, exports were exceptionally low due to the very low supplies. Because of a combination of adverse climate factors, the performance was so low that it represents an anomaly. We would in fact like to remind that, this year, production was just above 200,000 tons," reads a CSO note.
Shipments to the foreign markets between June 2021 and May 2022 stopped at 39,000 tons, registering a 65% drop compared with the previous season and in perfect line with the drop in production of Italian pears. The export share remained similar to previous years, i.e. slightly below 20%.
Volumes shipped to foreign destinations in previous years hovered between the over 70,000 tons of 2019/20, a season characterized by low domestic supplies, and the over 140,000 tons of 2018/19, a season characterized by a substantially regular production.
"As for the 2022/23 campaign, it seems exported volumes recovered compared with last year, though they remain below the potential of the period due to the difficulties caused by the many low grades. The situation was similar on the domestic market, with consumption recovering during the second half of 2022, yet still below average," report CSO experts.