"Our stone fruit campaign started in week 18 with premium cherries of calibre 32 and larger. High prices were realised due to the strong demand, and we have now been marketing much larger quantities of calibres 26-28-30 since CW 21. As we are represented in the most important growing regions in Spain, we were able to supply customers with clean produce despite the rain - if it rains in Valle del Jerte, the sun shines in Aragon," says Sebastian Ringwald, stone fruit importer and junior manager of the company of the same name.
At the end of week 23, there was heavy rain and hail in the Murcia region, continues Ringwald. "There will certainly be crop losses in the course of week 24/25, but we can't yet estimate the exact extent." As with cherries, the situation must also be viewed in a differentiated manner, the importer continues. "We also source goods from northern Spain, and the weather there has played along so far."
When it comes to stone fruit, the Black Forest company is taking a two-pronged approach. "We import from both Spain and France, whereby the latter origin is more of a complementary character. The French stone fruit season is much shorter than the Spanish one and the produce is more expensive, but stone fruit from France is nevertheless very popular with the specialised trade." In general, the marketing of stone fruit to date has been satisfactory despite the rainy weather in Germany.
Surge in demand expected for Platterinas
Paraguayos continue to gain in importance, while peaches in particular are losing market share. "In terms of volume, there has been a slight decline in platterinas, although we are expecting a surge in demand again thanks to investments in new varieties. In general, the stone fruit market is highly competitive these days," observes Ringwald. "Stone fruits from a wide variety of origins are on offer these days. In this respect, it will not only be an exciting campaign this year, but generally interesting to see where the journey is heading."
Distribution of premium products
Ringwald supplies German wholesale markets and food retailers with a wide selection of quality brands, such as Anabella (stone fruit and grapes), Clemenlady and Frutimur (citrus), Ros (Iberian premium citrus) as well as several other high-quality brands in cherries, Paraguayos, nectarines, peaches and persimmons. The range is rounded off in spring and summer with watermelons and other melon varieties. Vegetable onions of all kinds from Spain, Chile, Peru, New Zealand and Australia are also part of Ringwald's standard programme all year round.
For more information:
Sebastian Ringwald
René W. Ringwald GmbH
Kaiser-Str. 78
D-77933 Lahr / Black Forest
Phone: +49 7821 91540
Fax: +49 7821 915454
E-mail [email protected]
www.ringwald-fruchtimport.com