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Hans van den Heuvel, HillFresh International

"Next season, we want to introduce Limelon to the French, Spanish, and Portuguese markets"

The 2023 melon season will make history as the most erratic, says Hans van den Heuvel of the Dutch company HillFresh International. That is due to the harsh weather conditions. "Despite that, we're delighted with how our Limelon performed this year," he begins.

HillFresh introduced this surprisingly sweet-tasting melon with a lime flavor profile in 2018. "Last year, we tested the Limelon in Costa Rica and Morocco for cultivation and sales in April and May, before the Spain season. In Costa Rica, we need to keep testing for another year to learn more about the logistics."

"However, the test results in Morocco were so encouraging that we'll scale up next year. We should start as early as week 17 instead of week 21. Following that, we'll continue the season in Almería from week 21-25 and Murcia from week 26-36. There, we'll definitely expand cultivation for next season," says Hans.

He says reactions to the Limelon are promising. "Retailers in several countries are responding positively, and purchases show much growth. We're, thus, extremely excited to develop the project further. In Germany, for the first time, we provided support through social media to promote sales and raise awareness of the product. If there's sufficient commitment from the retail sector, we want to expand this in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the Nordic countries."

"Last year, we also, for the first time, had a commercial production in Taranto, Italy. We want to continue with that, partly to further develop the Italian market with our local partner. Next season, we want to start introducing the French, Spanish, and Portuguese markets to the Limelon," the HillFresh International CEO explains.

"We have global exclusivity for the variety, so we're looking to develop the market in Brazil, South Africa, the United States, and Canada with local partners on a local-for-local basis. We've selected partners in some countries and are working on further development in others."

"Known You Seeds, the Limelon's Taiwanese breeder, is also working hard on developing more varieties with improved resistances and a more commercial size within the same line," Hans continues. "Besides Limelon, we're also still testing a new promising yellow melon with a smaller, more 'personal' size. Per unit, it weighs 600-900 grams."

Golden Lady

"This variety, the Golden Lady, is characteristically oval with a smooth peel and spectacular high Brix level of 15 to 16. We're currently looking at which retailers could/want to do a trial program with this so we can set up a first crop. We'll also be testing a special new watermelon with a unique appearance and very high brix. More on this later, for sure," Hans concludes.

Just harvested and still in the field.

Hillfresh International is exhibiting at Fruit Attraction: 7B-05.

For more information:
Hans van den Heuvel
HillFresh International
Tel: +31 (0) 180 898 080
Email: Hans@hillfresh.eu
Website: www.hillfresh.eu