Warsaw-based importer Targban is continuing to see potential growth opportunities for new products coming into the Polish market, and is also working on broadening its portfolio of clients – but bananas remains one of its key products, according to Rafal Bury, head of the trade department at the company.
“Bananas are the single biggest import item for Targban,” he tells Eurofruit. “We also import a lot of citrus, grapes, vegetables and stonefruit. For our company, this time of year the biggest items are stonefruit – so peaches, nectarines, paraguayos and plums. Those are followed by Italian grapes, and then we have all kinds of melons, Argentinean lemons and of course bananas.”
Key sourcing countries for Targban remain Spain, Italy, Greece and Turkey, although outside Europe Bury names Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Morocco, Colombia, South Africa and Costa Rica as important markets for fresh products.
“Polish consumers are still very much price-oriented,” says Bury. “Price is the most important factor when it comes to making decisions while shopping. The other important factors are the quality and the visual appearance of the produce. Bio, organic, healthy and convenience products are all growing categories, but they are still niche markets.”
