The new Belgian pear season has begun. With European forecasts as they are, there are likely many opportunities for Belgian Conference pears in Europe this season. Other markets are still, however, being considered. Marc Evrard (BFV) and VLAM thus had a booth at The Brazil Conference on August 22 and 23 in Sao Paolo, Brazil. "We've plenty of pears to trade, so every market's needed, and Brazil is potentially a fantastic market for us," he says.
South America is not always an easy sales market for Conference pears. "It's a sizeable market, but with the necessary challenges. Transport, geopolitics, and economics-wise, it's not always easy to trade in, say, Brazil. Also, there's a lot of competition from Chile, Argentina, and Portugal, which is historically linked to Brazil. Then, you must invest heavily in personal relationships with buyers. The pandemic recently put a stop to that. But, we can now finally pick up where we left off."
Thus, with the start of the new season - that looks excellent for this Belgian product - came the perfect chance to put Conference back in the spotlight. "We showed the new production to (potential) customers and discussed what our crop looks like," says Marc. "Surely, with the end of pandemic measures, more prospects present themselves again for the Belgian product in Brazil."
"Still, we must stay realistic. People there aren't used to these pears, so it's not a given that they'll buy them. Brazil grows a wide variety of fruit, and pears fit perfectly into that offer. Nonetheless, it's not obvious that someone who buys bananas will choose pears instead of, for instance, melons. It will be hard work and take plenty of promotional efforts to put Conference pears on the map in other parts of the world. But I'm optimistic and have good contacts. That boosts the optimism, but we shouldn't become too euphoric," Marc concludes.
For more information:Marc Evrard
Belgische Fruitveiling
800 Montenakenweg
3800, St. Truiden, BE
Tel: +32 (0) 116 93 411
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.bfv.be