The Qtee pear variety, a cross between the Williams and the Broken Juli from Norway, has been in production for a few years in Spain, Belgium and South Africa. But Superalp is one of the first companies that will put the French Qtee on the French market. The harvest for the pear variety in the Alps generally takes place a week before the Williams harvest. “This year, we started harvesting around the 10th of August, which was about 10 days late. It is a variety harvested during the first days of August,” explains Servane Jaquet, commercial director at Superalp.
A pear with many assets
According to Servane, the Qtee is likely to appeal to the French consumer. “It is a very good pear in terms of taste. It is sweet, aromatic and modern in its appeal. We feel that young people now want a more crisp pear, that can be eaten without using a knife. The Qtee can indeed be enjoyed either by hand when it is green and crisp, or with a knife when its blushy red color turns to yellow, giving the pear a melting and juicy flavor.”
Following a program to plant 50 hectares of Qtee pear trees over 5 years, Servane explains that this new pear is also very interesting from an agronomic point of view. “We have already planted 20 hectares. The oldest orchards, which are two years old, are being harvested this year for the first time. In other words, the short time it takes for the Qtee to go into production represents a significant agronomic advantage. The pear is also claimed to be tolerant to fire blight. The Qtee is a relatively vigorous and productive variety, so the volumes per hectare should be met. Moreover, the trees took very well, grew nicely, they arch properly, which is quite promising.”
The Qtee also holds well post-harvest. “This pear variety is worked easily in fruit stations. It has the potential to hold very well on the shelves, since it can be consumed both green or when it gains more colors. Tests conducted at normal temperatures showed that it holds very well over a period of 10 days,” explains Servane.
“Focusing on local communication is essential to us”
For Superalp, it is very important that adapted communication accompanies the introduction of the Qtee variety from the regional orchards. “The pear is a species that has undergone very little varietal innovation in recent years, except for the Angelys. In our portfolio, we market varieties that are all 100 to 150 years old. We are therefore very proud to have planted an entirely new pear, and we want to communicate this pride to our local consumers. It is essential for us to organize events locally to show local consumers that they are in a region with dynamic producers. Let us not forget that 1 hectare of orchards represents 1 full-time job. In a context where the proximity between place of production and consumption is important, putting an emphasis on communication in our region around local apples and pears is a way to differentiate us in our own area.”
For more information:
Servane Jacquet
Superalp
Phone: 04 92 33 50 12
Fax: 04 92 33 50 11
Mobile: 06 71 55 23 18
s.jacquet@superalp.fr
http://www.superalp.fr
https://www.pommes-des-alpes-de-haute-durance.fr/