In calendar week 9, the first Italian strawberries of this year's season arrived at the Stuttgart Wholesale Market. "We are starting the new season almost the same way as in previous years," reports Bünyamin Hamurcu from ALEM GmbH. "We received two pallets in the night from Wednesday to Thursday and within a very short time up to 20 percent of this quantity had already been sold. In this respect, the first incoming goods meet a very receptive market."
© ALEM GmbHItalian strawberries from Basilicata in the incoming goods area.
Currently, only Italian strawberries are offered at the ALEM GmbH stand. Hamurcu: "What particularly convinced both me and our customers are the good qualities and large caliber. Even though we are officially still outside the high season, the goods are in no way inferior to their summer counterparts."
Approaching end of season for Turkish pomegranates and quinces
For more than 20 years, ALEM GmbH has been the place to go for fruit and vegetables from all over the world. Today, the company employs over 40 people and is mainly dedicated to supplying independent supermarkets in southern Germany. Exports to neighboring France are a complementary, but growing, part of the business. "As a direct importer, we are very strong in the area of pomegranates and quinces of Turkish origin. We are now heading towards the end of the season and the quality is increasingly deteriorating. Accordingly, demand is now also visibly declining."
Meanwhile, sales of southern European citrus fruits, especially oranges and clementines, continue to boom. "We offer both Spanish and Italian products and have found that our customers slightly prefer Italian fruits. In particular, Italian blood oranges are currently in high demand." Furthermore, with Carnival and Ramadan, two celebrations are imminent, Hamurcu continues. "The latter is more important to our predominantly ethnic customers. In particular, fruit vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, and the like are in much higher demand than usual," he concludes.
Photo credit: ALEM GmbH
For more information:
Bünyamin Hamurcu
ALEM GmbH
Stuttgart Wholesale Market
Tel: +49 0711-67 49 306 + 307
Tel: +49 0711-67 49 308
E-Mail: alemgmbh1@aol.com
www.alemgmbh.de