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Why and where the market for fruit and vegetable ingredients is flourishing

BikurimS

 

The market for fruit and vegetable ingredients is projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.6% and to exceed $180 billion by 2019, according to a report by market research firm MarketsandMarkets.

And while Europe led the market for fruit and vegetable ingredients in 2013 – due to substantial growth in the processed food and beverage sector – the Asia-Pacific region – especially China and India – is expected to be the fastest-growing market for fruit and vegetable ingredients in the next four years. Fruit and vegetable concentrates, in particular, are enjoying increasing demand there in line with growing consumer interest in healthy beverages.

In the report, ‘Fruit and Vegetable Ingredients Market’, author Nayan also predicts growth of the market in Latin America. She said this will be driven by factors such as greater demand for customised fruit and vegetable ingredients due to increasing consumption of processed dairy and ready–to–eat food products.
 

Fruit and Vegetable Ingredients Market Size, by Region, 2013 ($Billion)

Fruit & Vegetable Ingredients Market

Source: Industry Journals, Company Publications, Related Publications, and MarketsandMarkets Analysis
 

How fruit and vegetable ingredients are used in the market

The report categorises the fruit and vegetable ingredients market on the basis of the key type of ingredients – concentrates, pastes and purees, NFC (not from concentrate), and pieces and powders.

It also segments them according to the main end applications – beverages, confectionery products, ready-to-eat products, bakery products, soups and sauces, dairy products, and others (including dips, spreads, dressings, toppings, and puddings).

The ready-meals industry is a big user of canned vegetables (mainly for pizzas, pastas, soups and fresh and frozen meals), as is the meal components sector, while baby food companies use a variety of preserved fruit and vegetables.

An application experiencing growth is the use of fruit and vegetable-based ingredients as colouring and flavouring agents in foods and beverages, in response to consumer concern over synthetic ingredients.
 

Key players analysed in the report

Among leading market players profiled are the Archer Daniels Midland Company (US), Kerry Group plc (Ireland), AGRANA Group (Austria), DohlerGroup (Germany), SunOpta, Inc. (Canada), and SVZ International B.V. (The Netherlands).

Other prominent companies in the market are DIANA S.A.S. (France), Olam International Limited (Singapore), Sensient Technologies Corporation (US), and SensoryEffects Ingredient Solutions (US).
 

Seasonal shortages, price fluctuations limiting growth

Nayan says government initiatives to promote the fruit and vegetable ingredients industry and increasing trade in these commodities have complemented the overall growth of this industry. “However, strict food safety legislation and seasonal variations affecting the supply of raw materials with fluctuating prices restrain the growth of the market.”
 

Fruit and Vegetable Ingredients Market Size Trend, 2012–2019 ($Billion)

Fruit & Vegetable Ingredients Market

E – Estimated; P – Projected

Source: Industry Journals, Related Publications, Company Publications, and MarketsandMarkets Analysis
 

Read more about the ‘Fruit and Vegetable Ingredients Market’ report.

MarketsandMarkets advises that readers can avail of a discount of up to 30% on the off shelf report by using the code FAPRI30 in the “specific interest” section of the contact page of its website.

 

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

 

 

 

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Expansion in Ireland’s prepared fruit and vegetable market

A_salad_that_will_be_served_to_a_detainee_at_the_U

 

Growth in the fruit and vegetable convenience category is highlighted in a recent article from Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board.

Horticulture Division Manager Mike Neary writes that Kantar Worldpanel market research values Ireland’s prepared fruit and vegetable sales at €84 million at the retail point.

The growth in the prepared fruit and vegetable category in the retail market in recent years is evidence of the important role that convenience plays in the purchase decisions of households, he said.

According to Kantar, since 2008 the volume of sales in this category has grown 8%. “One of the drivers of this trend is the number of households that are now purchasing from this category, which has reached over 92% of all households. This is a 1.5% increase since 2012. The purchase frequency is 24 times per annum,” Neary said.
 

Fruit salad products performing the strongest

Private label products dominate the prepared fruit and vegetable category, with a 77% market share. Key lines in this category include vegetables, fruit, leafy salads, mixed tray salads and chilled salads, with the latter accounting for two fifths of the volume sales. However, in the last year it was fruit salad products that performed the strongest.

Neary said the Kantar research also showed people in the ‘pre- family’ stage are more likely to buy mixed tray salads, while retired shoppers are more likely to buy prepared fruit.
 

Prepared fruit & veg market benefits from convenience trend

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Chile eyes opportunities for its Hayward kiwifruit in US

chilekiwi karen brux

 

Last year was a challenging one for Chile’s kiwifruit sector after the frosts of 2013 decimated production volumes.

But according to Chilean Fresh Fruit Association (CFFA) marketing director Karen Brux, this year looks very promising, in particular for the country’s Hayward kiwis.

With Zespri now focusing on organic green and yellow kiwi, that opens up a window for Chile in supplying the conventional green ones, the CFFA believes.

Brux said demand for organic kiwis is increasing, which also bodes well for the country’s organic growers.

Brux said marketing of kiwis in the US is increasingly sophisticated. At the same time consumers are hungry for more information about the nutritional qualities and flavours of different fruits and want practical tips on how to incorporate them into their daily diets. This type of information helps drives sales, something that is increasingly important as there was little growth in either fruit consumption in general, or for kiwis in particular, in the US, from 2000–2012.

“Demand for kiwis in the US would be much higher if consumers were offered a good product year, but unfortunately that’s not the case,” she said.

“Chilean growers must follow the correct procedures to produce, harvest and send the fruit at the right time (e.g, not send Hayward kiwi in March when it is still unripe).”

“We have to show both distributors and American consumers that Chile can offer consistently good tasting fruit.”

 

Read the full interview in Spanish

 

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This year’s medFEL likely to attract about 6,000 visitors

Medfel2015logo

About 6,000 visitors are expected to attend this year’s medFEL, being held April 21-23 in Perpignan, France.

Thanks to the launch of medFEL TECH, the event now attracts representatives from the entire fruit and vegetable industry, ranging from products through to packaging, seed producers and plant breeders, and logistics and cold chain practitioners.

A powerful tool for prospecting new business, medFEL encompasses more than 35 export markets and this year its visitors are expected to include 120 VIP buyers from Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Hong Kong, Ivory Coast, India, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Sweden, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.

More than 4,000 BtoB meetings will be scheduled with exhibitors.

Focus on apples

With apples taking centre stage, fruit and vegetable producers from the French regions (Languedoc-Roussillon, Loire Valley, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur etc.) and Mediterranean countries (Greece, Morocco, Tunisia, Spain, Italy, Egypt, Algeria, Portugal, Turkey etc.) will shine the spotlight on every type of apple available to customers.

The major apple brands, such as Blue Whale, Cofruid’Oc Méditerranée, J.M.C. Fruits, Tifanette, Vog etc., will be exhibiting their produce alongside all the other varieties of fruit and vegetables.

Key issues

The consequences of the Russian embargo and five crop forecasts (apricot, peach, melon, plum and apple) will be the focus of a programme of debates designed to appeal to the media and medFEL visitors.

Organising committee president Chantal Passat said medFEL is responding to the demand for innovation, which is a key driver of the sector’s competitiveness.

”This will help our stakeholders to maintain a strong position in export markets and meet the changing expectations of consumers,” Passat said.

 

medFEL



 

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What’s happening with retail in Caucasus

There’s been significant growth in the retail sector in Belorussia

 

There are some 4,000 stores of different formats in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. Modern retail is not more than 30% of total trade. The share of supermarkets does not exceed 5% of the market, and the growth of their share is not expected in the near future.

The situation is similar in Armenia though in Azerbaijan the supermarket share is greater – 10%. One of the youngest retailers of Azerbaijan is resco; it is an affordable brand with high quality products for demanding consumers. Fresco is part of the Azeri Retail company which appeared on the market in 2010.

In January–November 2014, Azerbaijan imported 12,800 t of fruit at a value of $9 million, down 31% on 2013.

But fresh vegetable imports grew 26% (22,600 tons at $2.4 million) and potato imports – which totalled 110,000 t with a value of $8 million – were 2.5 times higher than in 2013, according to the Interfax.az agency.
 

Consolidation of formats by Belarusian retailers

There’s been significant growth in the retail sector in Belorussia – more than 18% in 2013 (on 2012) and 10% in the first half of 2014.

Though lately the growth has been slowing due to a general business decline, analysts are optimistic about the long-term prognosis of retail growth in Belorussia because the procurement of trade space is still quite insufficient – it is 1.5-2 times less than the EU average. Moreover, the shortage of some formats is so great that consumers from small towns have to shop in the country’s capital, Minsk.
The main trends in Belarusian retail sector at the moment are the consolidation of formats and the optimisation of trade processes.


X5 Group’s turnover higher

In the last quarter of 2014, the retailer X5 Group opened two new distribution centres: one of 34,000 m2 in the Rostov region (south of Russia) and another of 44,000 m2 close to Nizhniy Novgorod (Volga region).

Its turnover grew in 2014 thanks to inflation, new outlets and an assortment upgrade, especially in discount formats.

However some stores were also closed: 46 Pyaterochka discounters, 22 Perekrestok supermarkets, 45 Express supermarkets and 2 Karusel hypermarkets.
 

Magnit conquers Siberia

This year, Magnit, the largest Russian retailer, will open a new logistics and distribution centre near Krasnoyarsk. The retailer has bought 50 ha for this purpose. Additionally, new stores, both supermarkets and hypermarkets, will open in the region.
 

O’Key opens a new storehouse

The retailer O’Key is improving its logistics efficiency in Siberia and has rented a storehouse in Novosibirsk.

Until now, its merchandise distribution was done through four centres: in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Krasnoyarsk, Volgograd. Thus, the expansion of all the federal retailers to Russian regions continues.

 

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South Africa dominating German market with its late season table grapes

ble graph table grapes

 

A glut of table grapes on the market earlier in the season has seen prices crumble in Europe, as this graph from Germany’s Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE) shows.

In its market report to the end of week 4 of 2015, the BLE said South African growers are dominating table grape imports into Germany, mainly with the seedless grapes Prime, Flame and Thompson.

Also taking advantage of a window of opportunity as the Southern Hemisphere production winds down are suppliers from Namibia, with the same varieties as South Africa but also some Sugraone and Dan Ben Hannah.

The supply of Peruvian and Brazilian grapes has continued to taper off, the BLE said.
In 2013 Germany imported nearly 320,000 tons of fresh table grapes, with two fifths coming from Italy and an eighth from Greece.
 





 

 

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Concern in EU over increase in listeria infections

LSA

 

There’s been a worrying rise in listeria infections in Europe but cases involving campylobacter – the most common bacterial cause of food poisoning – have stabilised and there’ve been less cases of salmonellosis.

They are among the findings in a report released this week by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
 

Listeria: acquired mostly from ready-to-eat food

Speaking about the rise of invasive listeriosis cases reported, ECDC Chief Scientist Mike Catchpole said this was “of great concern as the infection is acquired mostly from ready-to-eat food and may lead to death, particularly among the increasing population of elderly people and patients with weakened immunity in Europe.”

While listeria was seldom detected above the legal safety limit in ready-to-eat foods and the number of confirmed cases in 2013 was relatively low at 1,763, these reported infections were mostly severe, with higher death rates than for other foodborne diseases.

In 2013, a total of 191 deaths due to listeria were reported, 64 in France, and 13 listeria outbreaks1 reported, of which 8 were supported by strong evidence2. In 3 of those cases, crustaceans, shellfish and molluscs, and products thereof, were implicated.

More than 5,000 units of ready-to-eat fruit and vegetables were tested that year – mostly samples taken at retail level – and L. monocytogenes (the bacteria that causes listeria) found in 1.4 % of them.

 

Salmonella linked to 59 deaths

People infected with salmonella tends to suffer diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps but most recover without treatment. It accounted for 22.5% of total food-borne outbreaks in 2013 and was reported as the cause of 59 deaths (compared to 56 for campylobacteriosis).

The report said salmonella was most frequently detected in poultry meat, and less often in pig or bovine meat.

Of nearly 1,560 units of fruit tested, it was found in only 0.8 % of samples, including in pre-cut, ready-to-eat fruit tested at a processing plant in Greece, and in one sample in the Netherlands.

Of 5,915 samples of vegetables tested, 0.1 % were salmonella-positive. Salmonella was found in one batch of leafy greens imported from another EU member state and in two batches of baby corn of non–EU origin.
 

Viruses: ‘Fruit, berries and juices’ equal third among foods implicated

Foodborne viruses include calicivirus, hepatitis A virus, flavivirus, rotavirus and other unspecified viruses.

The report said that in 2013, EU member states reported a total of 941 foodborne outbreaks caused by viruses, representing 18.1% of all outbreaks reported in the EU. Of these, less than a tenth (86) were considered of strong evidence, and of them, the majority (76) were caused by calicivirus.

‘Fruit, berries and juices and other products thereof’ and ‘mixed food’ (both 11.6 %) were equal third among most commonly implicated food vehicles, coming after ‘crustaceans, shellfish, molluscs and products thereof’ (40%) and ‘buffet meals’ (14%).

 

Three Verocytotoxigenic E. coli (VTEC) outbreaks linked to vegetables, juices and related products

Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) are a group of bacteria that cause infectious gastroenteritis.

In 2013, a total of 73 outbreaks caused by VTEC were reported, with 12 supported by strong evidence.

Among the latter, the main food vehicle was bovine meat and products thereof (4 strong evidence outbreaks), followed by ‘vegetables and juices and other products thereof’ (3) and cheese (2).
 

Yersinia: salad and raw grated carrot have been past infection sources

Bacteria of the yersinia genus cause the infectious disease yersiniosis, which can produce diarrhea and abdominal pain.

In 2013, eight outbreaks were reported in the EU, involving 16 people. There was strong evidence for just one outbreak and the source identified as meat and meat products.

In the period 2007–2012, a total of 104 foodborne yersinia outbreaks were reported by the member states. The food vehicle was identified in only ten outbreaks; in three outbreaks, the source was contaminated vegetables – raw grated carrot (1) and salad (2).

 

1 A ‘food-borne outbreak’ is defined as “an incidence, observed under given circumstances, of two or more human cases of the same disease and/or infection, or a situation in which the observed number of human cases exceeds the expected number and where the cases are linked, or are probably linked, to the same food source.”
 

2 Based on the strength of evidence implicating a suspect food vehicle, EFSA categorises outbreaks as either “strong evidence” or “weak evidence” outbreaks.
 

 

 

Read the report “The European Union summary report on trends and sources of zoonoses, zoonotic agents and food-borne outbreaks in 2013”.

 

 

 

 

 

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Tomato Inspiration Event attracts world leaders in tomato cultivation

A hundred of the world’s most innovative tomato growers will come together on Thursday February 5 in Berlin for the 2nd edition of the Tomato Inspiration Event.

 

A hundred of the world’s most innovative tomato growers will come together on Thursday February 5 in Berlin for the 2nd edition of the Tomato Inspiration Event.

The event brings together international CEO’s from the world of cultivation and supply, allowing them to inspire each other to reach new insights and possibly even new forms of collaboration.

The theme this year – the 2nd edition of the Tomato Inspiration Event – is ‘Crop and Process Technology’. Organisers say this subject is now receiving more attention than ever: “After all, it’s the (growing) technique which can further help with the production, quality and added value in the global tomato growing industry.”

“Globally the tomato is the most–grow greenhouse vegetable, whereby top level innovation and entrepreneurship go hand in hand.”
 

Who is the best tomato grower of 2015?

The big finale of the Tomato Inspiration Event is the presentation of the Tomato Inspiration Award, which recognises the best tomato grower in the world in the field of crop and process technology.

It will go to a grower considered a visionary and who has successfully embraced and applied new growing techniques with demonstrated improvements in the end product, and been a pioneer in overcoming negative production effects by making innovative technical adjustments to their operations.

An independent jury based in Japan, the US, Italy and the Netherlands is now busy ranking the Inspiration Award finalists.

The winner of the Tomato Inspiration Award 2014, Windset Farms, will attend the event.
 

The Tomato Inspiration Event is exclusively for invitees.

For more information: http://www.tomatoinspirationevent.com/contact/

 

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Russia claims Israeli pepper shipment poses pest risk

Russia’s veterinary and phytosanitary authority Rosselkhoznadzor says more than 25 tons of peppers from Israel were detained at the Black Sea port Novorossiysk due to fear of the spread of the western flower thrip.

Russia has blocked the import of more than 25 tons of peppers from Israel, saying they pose a risk for the spread of western flower thrips.

The Russian veterinary and phytosanitary authority Rosselkhoznadzor said the move followed inspection at its main Black Sea port Novorossiysk, in the region of Krasnodar Krai.

In a statement in Russian on its website, it said the peppers had been detained to prevent the introduction and spread of the pest in the Russian Federation.

The authority also said that in the year to date, quarantine officers in Krasnodar Krai and the Republic of Adygea have already detained 4 pepper shipments, totalling more than 60 tons, because they did not did not meet Russia’s phytosanitary requirements.







 

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US a winner as Taiwan’s export market expands

409px-Taiwan_Strait

 

Last year was a near–record in terms of US farm exports to Taiwan, the USDA reported this week.

It also said demand from Taiwan consumers is pushing up expanding the market for diverse imports, including for fruit, vegetables and tree nuts.

The US is Taiwan’s leading source of farm products overall – supplying about a quarter of Taiwan’s total agricultural imports – and of most varieties of imported fresh fruit. Its respective shares of the import market in what is one of Asia’s big traders includes apples 39%, cherries 50%, peaches and nectarines 76%, table grapes 62%, plums 78%, oranges 81% and berries 79%.

The US also holds a dominant market share for most vegetables, including broccoli 96%, onion 87%, lettuce 99% and potatoes 96%, the USDA said.

Given the island’s relatively small agricultural sector, its dependence on imports is expected to keep increasing, it said.

 

Also growth in ready-to-eat foods

In 2013, Taiwan’s fresh fruit and vegetable segment grew 80% on 2012 and the 7-Eleven convenience store chain – which sells about 3,000 tons of fresh fruit and vegetables a year – expected fresh fruit and vegetable sales to rise by a tenth last year.

Convenience stores are now major players in Taiwan’s growing market for ready-to-eat foods such as fruit (mainly, bananas, apples and yams) and lunch boxes, the USDA said. 7-Eleven started selling fresh fruit in 2010 and its annual banana sales volume have reached more than 1,000 tons.
 

Increase expected in indirect imports of fresh fruit by Taiwan’s retailers

Industry sources estimate that about 15% of Taiwan’s imported fresh fruit is now imported directly by supermarkets, hypermarkets, and warehouse stores. The rest is imported by importers/distributors.

“Direct import of fresh fruit by retail stores is expected to continue to increase in the next few years,” the USDA said.

However, it also said sales of imported goods in traditional markets should not be overlooked. Industry sources estimate about 55% of imported fruit from the US is sold in wet markets island–wide.

 

Sources:

Taiwan: Commodities Pave Way for Near-record U.S. Ag. Exports to Taiwan

Taiwan: Retail Foods

Both published by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service’s Global Agricultural INformation Network (GAIN)