The back end of winter and most of spring saw ideal growing conditions so the cherry crop at Hansen Orchards has set nicely. "The past four to six weeks have seen a little bit of everything in Tasmania, rain, some wind, and a few warm days mixed in," comments Baden Ribbon, Sales Manager at the company.
"All of our cherries are under rain covers. Cherries are very susceptible to rain damage in the weeks leading up to harvest, so our rain covers have protected us from any damage that would have been caused by rain over the past four to six weeks. They also shield the cherries from wind which can cause scarring and bruising. One advantage of rain covers for me in my position as Sales Manager, is that I can sit down with our valuable customers from all over the world and plan our supply programs with confidence that our supply will not be interrupted. This includes the confidence for both us and our customers to invest in promotional activity which is key to driving our brand awareness and growth in sales."
"We have been picking and packing small volumes for more than a week already, with the majority of cherries being sold here in our own state of Tasmania in the lead-up to Christmas. Size and brix are looking good, with the majority of cherries looking to be larger than 30mm, which is where it needs to be for the opportunities we have, especially in the Asian market."
Hansen Orchards have already sent a very small amount off into Asia already which was well received, but they will not ramp up export volumes until early January. South East Asia is the main export market.
Chinese New Year
"We are very fortunate that CNY always falls within our season. The upcoming CNY falls on the 29th January which means we will begin the season with Chinese New Year demand but end the season without it. We don't pack specifically for each individual Chinese New Year (this year is the year of the Snake), but our 1kg and 2kg packaging is made with gold foiling and presents well to be used as a gift for Chinese New Year.
"We will have approximately 30% to 40% of our season remaining after Chinese New Year. The heavy rain that mainland cherry growers received decreased supply availability in the Australian domestic market which has resulted in higher price points here. It is probably more so within the Australian market that we will see stronger market conditions for Tasmanian cherries."
Bumper Chilean crop
"We are competing against Chilean sea freight, which is arriving to market 3 to 5 weeks after harvest, whereas Tasmanian cherries are arriving within 2 to 3 days of harvest. So, we have an advantage in freshness and we also have an advantage in fruit size with Tasmanian cherries typically one or two sizes larger than Chilean. So, we are offering a different product and targeting a different part of the market. We are targeting the top end of the market, which includes gift giving, and larger, fresher Cherries are ideal for that. If we get our product right, and we have invested heavily into our business to be able to do that, then I don't feel it matters what the Chileans are up to."
For more information:
Baden Ribbon
Hansen Orchards
Tel: +61 3 6264 0200
[email protected]
www.hansenorchards.au