That Australian grape exports were doing well this year was well known, but new Horticulture Australia Ltd (HAL) figures on the trade have certified the season as the best in five years.
Export sales of table grapes rose 49 per cent to A$84m in the first nine months of the 2008/09 season year-on-year, the HAL figures show.
Total exports of fruit, nuts and vegetables rose 12 per cent to A$594m, reported the Weekly Times Now, A$334m, A$140m and A$120m respectively.
One of the major factors in the rise was the fall in the Australian dollar, said HAL export manager Wayne Prowse.
The average price in export markets was A$2.70 per kg, 30 cents higher than the previous season.
Table grape exports to Hong Kong rose 78.5 per cent in the nine-month period, hitting around 10,000 tonnes. Sales to Thailand rose about a third to 4,400 tonnes.
“They like our product and Thailand imports more grapes which gives us a stronger (market) share,” Mr Prowse told the Times.
“Australian produce is always perceived as better quality - it depends on whether our prices are competitive.”
Australia’s table grape exports this year have been aided by growing conditions, with an extended ripening period giving fruit high sugar levels and stretching out supply to a market with depressed demand in many sectors.
The country’s grape exports should benefit in the future from decreased tariffs as part of Australia’s free trade agreement with New Zealand and the ASEAN bloc.
