"The situation in Israel doesn't much affect our products' supply or quantities," says Jordi Fijnheer of the Dutch company FruitPro begin June. The company imports fruit from countries like Israel, South Africa, Peru, and Chile. FruitPro is part of the Israeli growers' cooperative, Gallilee. "Our growers keep going, albeit under more challenging conditions."
"I think we've found the right balance between our growers' safety, which is, of course, paramount, and production. That means we can get most volumes as expected, except for some minneolas and oranges. The situation hindered those exports," Jordi explains.
Good quality
He adds that the citrus quality was excellent. "It was generally a great quality season. Abundant rain, hail, or heat waves can sometimes plague the country. That didn't happen this year, so production was very stable."
That is one reason why this season ended later than usual in mid-May. "The situation and unrest in Israel are also partly why many growers couldn't harvest their full capacity at once. The citrus' excellent quality played a role, too," Jordi points out.
Stable grapefruit market, good mandarin demand
He calls grapefruit sales stable. "We don't consider that a growing item. Its target market is the somewhat older consumer; other groups buy these less." Things are different for another large citrus category: mandarins. There, Fijnheer sees good demand, which should rise slightly annually.
Here, FruitPro focuses primarily on the Orri. "It still stands out on the market, flavour and quality-wise. Israeli Orri mandarins manage to enter the market at the perfect time. The first ones arrive around December, and the season continues until May. That often means you outdo mandarin varieties regarding flavour and quality," Jordi continues.
Interesting
He reckons that supply window is one of Israeli citrus' great strengths. "Those arrive [in Europe] in the winter when there are few alternatives. Israel fills that gap very well with both quality and volumes. That's what makes the country so interesting."
FruitPro also still finds it interesting to import products from Israel. Their product quality is, after not, the same as before October 2023. "Many of our customers are long-term partners who look beyond the situation; we don't struggle to sell the volumes." Besides citrus, FruitPro imports Israeli avocados, pomegranates, mangoes, and dates, among others.
Jordi is also optimistic about the upcoming citrus season, which begins in late September. "Cultivation-wise, Israel should supply the same volumes again next year. We don't expect any shortages," he concludes.
For more information: 
Jordi Fijnheer
FruitPro
Tel:+31 180 763391
[email protected]
www.fruitpro.nl