The Italian fresh produce trade has welcomed a major breakthrough in the development of the country's kiwifruit exports following the announcement that Australia will permit cold treatment of the fruit in transit.
Up until now, Italian kiwifruit consignments sent to the Southern Hemisphere country had to undergo cold treatment prior to being shipped, but Italian agency CSO, in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, has successfully negotiated a revision to the import protocol allowing for treatment to occur en route.
The news means Italian exporters can now look forward to developing their sales to Australia during the coming season.
'Growth in exports to Australia has been steady during the past five years and it's a market that pays well and where there is good demand for the fruit year-round,' said a spokesperson for CSO.
With a population of just over 22m people, there is certainly room to expand sales of Italian kiwifruit in a similar manner to other emerging markets.
Last season, Italy exported a total of 3,815 tonnes of kiwifruit to Australia, accounting for less than 1 per cent of the 335,440 tonnes it exported in 2008/09.
Italy's kiwifruit export business has become noticeably more export-oriented over the past few years, with shipments to markets outside Italy accounting for 71 per cent of overall production last season compared with 61 per cent in 2004/05.
