South African fresh produce exporter, Colors Fruit has announced the establishment of a new marketing office in Japan, in a move seen by the company as an important step in increasing its presence in Japan, South Korea and the Far East region in general.
'Colors Fruit (Far East) will become part of our international network which currently includes marketing offices in Canada, the UK and Europe,' says Riaan van Wyk, CEO of Colors Fruit (South Africa). 'We are excited about the opportunities in the Far East that will be captured by a dedicated representative in Japan.'
Van Wyk says the location of Colors Fruit (Far East) in Japan gives the company easy access to deal with customers in Japan as well as in South Korea, the latter being a fairly new and growing market for South African citrus. By air, South Korea is only one and a half hours away from Tokyo.
Van Wyk also announced the appointment of well-known Japanese fresh produce personality, Aki Yamada, to head up Colors Fruit (Far East). Yamada has previously worked with Sunkist, Royal and most recently Goldspan, a Capespan subsidiary. He has more than 30 years of experience in the citrus trade.
Yamada says as Colors Fruit and Farmsecure continue to grow their global business, Japan will become an even more important market for grapefruit.
'Japan receives nearly 30 per cent of grapefruit exported from South Africa every year,' he explains. 'Consumers are used to South African grapefruit and every year look forward to the start of the season.'
Yamada says having direct representation in the Japanese market enables Colors Fruit to know where they stand in terms of supply responsibility and the quality of fruit they supply.
'Japan is a very mature and sophisticated market; the requirements for quality and food safety are strict. Japan is a big producer of fruit but there is no doubt that the market will open up for other fruit from South Africa and consumers will be given more choice. It is exciting and it is the right thing to do.'
Van Wyk says that in addition to grapefruit, there are also opportunities for South Africa to grow its sales of oranges and lemons in Japan, as well as South Korea and other countries in the Far East. The Southern Hemisphere supply of oranges to Japan and South Korea is currently dominated by Australia, while Chile is the major supplier of Southern Hemisphere lemons into Japan.
According to Yamada the Japanese market is doing well at the moment: 'Due to adverse weather conditions during winter and spring, the availability of local fruit is currently quite limited. This has opened the market to imported fruit and this demand will hopefully be maintained throughout the summer months. There is every reason to expect a better grapefruit market than usual, as long as supplies out of South Africa can be carefully managed according to the demand.'
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