Storm Dana and the subsequent flooding have had a severe impact on fruit growing in large parts of Spain. This in turn is affecting the current procurement of goods, especially persimmons, as Enrique Pedros-Frank, Spain specialist at the Nuremberg Wholesale Market, tells us. "Although there are no serious bottlenecks yet, the quantities available are extremely limited at the moment. To slow down the kaki sales accordingly, prices have already been raised several times. Overall, we are currently around 25 per cent above the price level of the previous year."
According to Pedros, entire kaki orchards have been destroyed, especially in the Valencia and Castellón areas. Some packing houses are also underwater. This will also have an impact on the markets later in the season. "I expect the persimmon season to end prematurely: normally we can offer our customers Spanish persimmons until well into March, but this year we will probably have to stop two to three weeks earlier." To meet demand, the fruit wholesaler is already offering additional quantities from Italy, which is unusual at this time of year.
Enrique Pedros-Frank during FreshPlaza.de's wholesale market visit in 2022.
However, the quality of the goods received so far has been consistently satisfactory, continues Pedros. "There are relatively few exportable persimmons available and we are mainly getting small-calibre fruits (20, 22, 24), which are particularly suitable for the packaging sector, i.e. food retail. In wholesale, on the other hand, the larger calibres (10-12-14) have traditionally received more attention. Accordingly, it is currently extremely difficult to get enough goods in the desired calibres."
Spanish persimmons
Stable citrus market
In contrast to the persimmon sector, the effects of the flood disaster on the citrus fruit sector have so far been rather manageable. "There is sufficient supply of goods across all products and prices are roughly the same as last year. Apart from minor delays in delivery of 1-2 days, we do not see any major problems in the citrus fruit category that we cannot solve," explains Pedros.
Demand for Spanish oranges is currently moderate, while clementines are traditionally in increasing demand in the run-up to Christmas. Pedros: "We are currently trading the Clemenules variety, which is usually replaced by Clemenvilla from the beginning or middle of January and later by Nadorcott. This year, there has been a fairly seamless seasonal transition from the southern to the Northern Hemisphere without any gaps in supply: until mid-October, we traded South African Nadorcott, followed by Nadorcott from Peru, which we only offer for a short time to bridge the gap." Since the beginning of November, the fruit wholesaler has primarily been focusing on selling Spanish Clemenules, with Italian citrus fruits also being offered as a supplement.
Spanish clementines of the Clemenules variety
Rising demand for Spanish blood oranges
Früchte Pedros GmbH has been considered a point of contact for Spanish fruit and vegetable products for many years. In addition to the already proven blond oranges Navelina and Navel, other varieties such as Cara Cara and blood oranges (including Sanguinelli) are also becoming increasingly important in the Spanish citrus sector. "On the one hand, demand for such items is increasing in local markets, while on the other hand, producer prices for these fruits are also somewhat higher, which is why it is also attractive for producers to cultivate them. Meanwhile, grapefruit sales have been on a steady downward trend for years," concludes Pedros, who expects to see the first Spanish blood oranges and red grapefruits in his incoming goods shortly before Christmas.
Photo credit: Früchte Pedros
For more information:
Enrique Pedros-Frank
Früchte Pedros/Enrique Pedros GmbH
Nuremberg Wholesale Market
Tel.: +49 911 31 48 40
Fax: +49 911 31 37 16
[email protected]
www.fruechte-pedros.de