Fepex

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EU fruit and vegetable imports rise 12%

Fepex says the strong growth in the value of EU fruit and vegetable imports reflects the ease of access to the EU compared to other markets, and the strong competition EU producers face from non-EU producers.

EU imports of fruit and vegetables from non-EU countries totalled €11.7 billion for January-October 2015 – 12% higher than over the same period in 2014.

In volume, the growth was a more modest 2%, to 11.6 million tons, according to the latest Eurostat as processed by Fepex, the Spanish federation of associations of producers and exporters of fruit, vegetables, flowers and live plants.

Fepex said the strong growth in the value of imports reflects the ease of access to the EU market compared to other markets, and the strong competition EU producers face from non-EU producers.

EU fruit imports

EU imports of fruit from non-EU countries were up 11% in value to €9.83 billion while the growth in volume was just 2%, to 9.9 million tons Fepex said.

It highlighted growth of 19% in fruit imports from South Africa, to €1.39 billion. Citrus, grapes, pears and apples are the main fruits imported from this country.

Fepex said also worth noting were that:

  • EU fruit imports from Chile were up 13% to €816.5 million,
  • Those from Turkey rose 10% to €636.2 million.

In the case of traditional EU fruit suppliers (especially for bananas), Costa Rica and Ecuador, the respective growth was 3%, to €993.3 million and 1%, to €731.1 million.

EU vegetable imports

EU vegetable imports from non-EU countries in the year to October 2015 were up 12% in value – to €1.88 billion – compared to the same period in 2014, but the volume remained at about 1.6 million tons.

Morocco, the EU’s top non-EU vegetable supplier, recorded strong growth of 15%, with a total of €630 million. Tomatoes are the main vegetable the EU imports from Morocco and at €295.7 million, these imports recorded growth in value of 25%.

Israel and Egypt, the EU’s next biggest suppliers of vegetables, saw respective increases of 6% and 5%.

Potatoes and carrots are the vegetables most imported by the EU from Israel, while for Egypt it’s potatoes, onions and green beans.

Source: Fepex
Image “Reefer ship Chiquita Bremen” by Garitzko (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

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Growth in Spanish fruit & veg exports

pepper

Spanish exports of fresh fruit and vegetables for January to October 2015 were up 7% in volume and 14% in value relative to the same period in 2014 – reaching 10 million tons and €9.47 billion – according to Fepex.

Exports of vegetables were up 4.5% to 4 million tons, for a value of €3.77 billion (+14%) and those of fruit totalled 6 million tons (+ 9%) for a value of €5.7 billion (+14%), according to Spanish government data analysed by Fepex.

The most recent figures, for the month of October, show Spanish exports of fruits and vegetables stood at 804,644 tons, practically equal in volume to the same month in 2014, while the value was 11% higher, at €804 million.

In October, a 4% drop in fruit exports, to 470,040 tons, largely offset the 7% growth in vegetable exports, to 334,604 tons. But the value went up 20% in the case of vegetables, to €306 million, and 6% for fruit, to €498 million.

The main vegetables exported in October were cucumbers, peppers, lettuce and tomatoes. Relative to October 2014, there was 15% volume growth in cucumber exports, to 68,584 tons. Zucchini exports were up 25% to 31,272 tons and those of potato up 61% to 28,066 tons.

In fruit, tangerine exports declined 6% and oranges 2%, to 41,744 tons, while there was a strong increase – 39% – in persimmon exports, to 43,294 tons.

source: Fepex

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Spain works on accessing American and Asian markets

Argentina, Brazil, China, Japan, India, Peru and Thailand are among the markets that Spain’s fresh produce sector is actively exploring for new export opportunities.

Argentina, Brazil, China, Japan, India, Peru, Thailand and the United States are among the markets Spain’s fresh produce sector is actively exploring for new export opportunities.

Work on accessing these countries was discussed this week in Madrid by a special fruit and vegetables working group set up as part of the Spanish government’s internationalisation plan.

Fepex, the Spanish federation of associations of producers and exporters of fruit, vegetables, flowers and living plants, said in a press release that the 7th meeting of the working group saw further analysis of problems in accessing non-EU markets requiring phytosanitary protocols, as well as the receipt of updates on work underway to secure market access.

New proposals for opening up markets were also put to the meeting and Fepex said in this context it conveyed, among other proposals, the Spanish sector’s interest in access to Peru for stone fruit.

Priority markets and products

Fepex said among the priority markets and products being analysed by the working group regarding export opportunities are:

  • Argentina: onions, cherries, strawberry plants, apples, peaches, plums, stone fruit trees;
  • Brazil: strawberries, blueberries, strawberry plants, watermelon plant seeds, and aubergine (eggplant) seeds;
  • China: peaches, plums, grapes;
  • Japan: persimmons and tomatoes;
  • India: pip fruit and persimmons;
  • Thailand: stone fruit,
  • United States: Fepex said Spain can now export apricots and avocados to the US under an agreement between the US Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and Fepex. A requirement of the US was that Fepex set up a Trust Fund. Work continues on agreements with the US for the export of Spanish peaches, nectarines, plums, cherries, strawberry plants, pears and apples.

The fruit and vegetables working group, one of various groups established under the framework of the Spanish government’s Internationalisation Plan for the Agro-food Sector, includes representatives from the government, including the Spanish foreign trade office, and organisations representing the sector, such as Fepex.

Image: courtesy of Fepex

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Spain’s fruit and veg exports up 8% in volume

Spanish exports of fruit and vegetables for January to September this year were up 8% in volume (to 9.2 million tons) and 14% in value (to €8.6 billion) compared to the same period last year, according to government figures processed by FEPEX.

Spanish exports of fruit and vegetables for January to September this year were up 8% in volume (to 9.2 million tons) and 14% in value (to €8.6 billion) compared to the same period last year, according to Spanish government figures processed by FEPEX.

Fruit exports
Fruit exports, which accounted for 60% of the total, rose 10% in volume to 5.6 million tons, and 15% in value to €5.2 billion. FEPEX said citrus, berries, melons and, to a lesser extent, stone fruit, grew strongly in both volume and value.

Berry exports
blueberry €202 million (+ 31%)
raspberry €182 million ( + 35%)
blackberry €11.8 million (+ 48%)
gooseberry €6.6 million (+ 191%)

Melon exports
watermelon €290 million (+ 31%)
melon €258 million (+ 7%)

Stone fruit exports: peach, nectarine, plum, apricot and cherry exports totalled €1 billion (+ 12%) and 999,981 tons (+ 2%).

Vegetable exports

Vegetable exports to September this year totalled 3.6 million tons, up 4% on the same period of 2014, with a value of €3.46 billion (+ 14%).
Products with the most striking growth:

  • tomatoes €705 million (+ 1%)
  • peppers €581 million (+ 4%)
  • lettuce €442 million (+ 16%)
  • cabbage €332 million (+ 14%)
  • zucchini €214 million (+ 60%)
  • garlic €175 million (+ 40%)

Sales of Spanish fruit & veg to other EU countries

Spain’s exports of fruits and vegetables to other EU countries stood at €8 billion, up 17% and accounting for 93% of its total export value, while its exports to non-EU countries were down 9% to €602 million. Germany, with €2.1 billion (+ 17%) remains the main export market for Spanish fruit and vegetables, representing 24% of the total.
It is followed by France with €1.57 billion (+ 15%) and the UK with €1.2 billion (+ 16%).

source: FEPEX

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Fruit Attraction 2015 drew exhibiting companies from 25 countries

Fruit Attraction 2015, held in Madrid October 28-30, beat all the fair’s records, reinforcing its role as the EU's main platform for marketing fruit and vegetables, the organisers, IFEMA and FEPEX, said in a press release.

Organisers say the 7th edition of Fruit Attraction, held in Madrid October 28-30, was the most comprehensive to date.

The fair beat all its records, reinforcing its role as the EU’s main platform for marketing fruit and vegetables, the organisers, IFEMA and FEPEX, said in a press release.

Highlights from the fair data:

  • A total of 49,367 professionals from 100 countries attended, up 22% on the previous year.
  • The number of exhibitors grew 23%, with 1,028 companies from 25 countries.
  • The exhibition area expanded 22% to 33,046 m2.
  • The number of international participants increased 46%, with a total of 9,812 professionals from 100 countries.
  • The number of international exhibitors rose to 27% of the total.
  • Visitors from Italy, France, Portugal, Netherlands, the UK, Germany, Poland and Belgium accounted for 86% of the total number of participants from outside Spain.
  • The ‘B2BFruit New Markets’ area hosted more than 200 business meetings between exhibitors and buyers from 15 countries.
  • The International Guest Programme brought over 600 professionals to Madrid from the purchasing and distribution chains of 53 countries.
  • An extensive programme of activities with some 2,000 attendees ran in parallel to the commercial activity

FEPEX and IFEMA said a special mention should go to the Latin American professionals who were present at the fair. They came from 16 countries, including Brazil, Chile, Peru, Mexico and Argentina, joining North American attendees from the US and Canada.

“A large number of professionals also came from the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa), especially Morocco, Egypt, Israel, Algeria, United Arab Emirates, Tunisia and Jordan. Asian and African countries, such as China, Korea, India, Hong Kong, Malaysia, South Africa, Senegal, Mali and Angola also increased their presence at this edition, showing the growing diversification of Spanish and European exports.”

They said the exhibition area featuring fruit and vegetable producers and suppliers was once again the area with the strongest participation, with 70% of the display and 714 exhibitors. The ancillary services sector was also well represented, with 30% of the display and 291 exhibitors.

“For this edition, the suppliers’ area was reorganised into a production area and a distribution area. The professional visitors were therefore able to visit Auxiliary Industry and Distribution and Logistics companies in order to find the best suppliers to distribute their products in optimum conditions, and at Tech4Fruits, they discovered solutions and technological innovations for improving productivity and production quality,” the organisers said.

Among other highlights:

  • A new exhibition area, the Organic Hub, for companies offering organic fruit and vegetable products, attracted the participation of 50 companies.
  • The Technical Events Programme held in parallel with the trade exhibition offered many activities and talks, among them the 1st International Persimmon Symposium, Kaki Attraction, focusing on the realities of producing and marketing this fruit, and the 2nd Stone Fruit Attraction, whose aim is to promote Spanish stone fruit production.
  • The Pasarela Innova area showcased 37 new products offered by participants.
  • The Fruit Fusion gastronomy area was a forum providing information, innovation and interpretation of the best farm products available to the catering industry.
  • Food donations: the Madrid Food Bank collected over 30,200 kg of fruit and vegetable products from the fair, 5,000 more than last year.

The next edition of Fruit Attraction will be held October 5-7, 2016.

See Eurofresh Distribution’s #FA15 photo gallery.

 

 

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Spain exporting more fruit, less tomatoes and lettuce

Spanish exports of fruit and vegetables were up 3.6% in volume and 3.4% in value this January compared to the last one, with a volume of 1.28 million tons and value of €1.14 million.

Spain’s orange exports lift 23% this January compared to the first month of 2014

fepex export jan figs.png
Spanish exports of fruit and vegetables were up 3.6% in volume and 3.4% in value this January compared to the last one, with a volume of 1.28 million tons and value of €1.14 million. But for vegetables alone, Spain’s exports were actually down 2% in both volume and value – to 620,219 tons and €619.4 million respectively – due to a fall in trade in the country’s main two vegetable exports: tomatoes and lettuce.

Fepex, the Spanish federation of associations of producers and exporters of fruit, vegetables, flowers and live plants, said it was concerned that both the value and volume had dropped for vegetables, “because it affects crops such as tomato and lettuce which are of major social and economic importance for the sector in Spain.”

Using Spanish government figures, Fepex estimates tomato exports were down 12.7% in volume and 6.6% in value to 136,072 tons and €152 million respectively, while lettuce was down 9.4% in volume and 2.6% in value, to 93,906 tons and €87.8 million. And while cucumber was up 11% to 98,257 tons, it was down 26% in value.

Spanish fruit exports

Fepex also reported the following export figures for this January:

  • Mandarin up 3.5% to 272 676 tons
  • Orange up 23% to 243,242 tons
  • Lemon up 12% 61,218 tons
  • Persimmon up 10% to 16,542 tons
  • Strawberry up 24% more to 8,827 tons
  • Avocado up 30% to 8,028 tons

Read Fepex press release (in Spanish)

 

 

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How to be a must-see at Fruit Attraction

Organisers of this year’s Fruit Attraction fair in Madrid aim to attract 1,000 companies and 46,000 professionals from 90 countries.

Ten tips for success at the 2015 event from Fruit Attraction managing director Raúl Calleja

Organisers of this year’s Fruit Attraction aim to attract 1,000 companies and 46,000 professionals from 90 countries.
At a recent workshop organised by the 5 al Día organisation, Fruit Attraction managing director Raúl Calleja shared his advice on how to maximise success from this annual event in Madrid.
“You’re not buying square metres but the interest of thousands of clients. It’s a commercial tool for starting business relationships with operators worldwide and increasingly the market international buyers use to select products,” Calleja stressed.

Here are his tips:

1. Organise your participation together with the FA15 organisers
Find out what tools they can put at your disposal and let them share their experience to develop your strategy.

2. Stand out from the crowd
Create a message to communicate that is specific to Fruit Attraction 2015 and that will capture the attention of your targets.

3 Ensure this message appears in all you do to promote your participation
It should take centre stage in your stand image, corporate identity, pre-show, invitations, ads in the trade press. the goal is to make yourself a must-see at FA15! Get people talking about your company and products before the event – create expectations and interest.

4. Pre-show calls to action & organisation
Create an enticing invitation for your desired visitors telling them where you’ll be and why to see you. It’s not enough to just say “Visit us”.
The goal is to generate traffic to your stand with pre-show marketing and promotion. Consider sharing promotion costs with other companies. Organise social media, web banners, newsletters and so on.

5 Make use of the Fruit Attraction programme for international guests
You may be able to invite someone with their costs paid.

6 Harness the tools for exhibitors in the Trade Meeting Point

7 Get your stand design right
Research shows that when someone enters a stand area, with their eyes they look around left to right but physically they usually move from right to left. Keep this in mind and orientate your stand accordingly.

8 Prepare your team for the stand.

Your stand is a point of reception so your representatives should always be identified in some way so visitors know who to speak to. Your stand should also be a centre of organisation that helps optimise your time.

9 Make your stand design the most functional possible

Remember, it’s your headquarters while you’re there.

10 Take advantage of all the promotional tools that FA15 puts at your disposal

Follow updates:
Twitter: @fruitattraction
Facebook: /fruitattraction
Fruit Attraction web: www.ifema.es/fruitattraction_06/

See Calleja’s original presentation in Spanish via the link here.

 

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Opening new Asian markets a priority for Spanish exporters

Entering new markets in China and other Asian countries such as Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam and South Korea a priorities for Spanish fresh produce exporters.

China and other Asian countries such as Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam and South Korea are priorities for negotiations to open up new markets, says Spain’s exporter federation Fepex.

But at a meeting of its Working Group on Fruit and Vegetables in Madrid this week – to discuss an Internationalization plan – product-country specific protocols with contain very strict phytosanitary requirements were identified as the main barrier faced by fruit and vegetable producers and exporters.

Meanwhile, attendees were informed that that a proposed protocol with China for the export of peaches and plums from Spain is currently being assessed by the Chinese authorities.

 

Read Fepex’s report on the meeting in Spanish.