Egyptian exporter Belco has revealed that it is investing in the production of raspberries in the north of the country, around 45 minutes from Cairo on the road to Alexandria.
“At Belco, we are always looking for new varieties and products to differentiate us from our competitors,” said product manager Amr El-Beltagy. “We researched what we could add to our range and sent a team to Spain to lean more and receive training in the field. We talked to experts and then implemented all this back in Egypt with the help of the variety owner. The variety is adapted to the low number of chilling hours typical in Egypt.”
According to El-Beltagy, Belco’s raspberries will principally be for the UK, the company’s main market, and potentially for Germany and the Netherlands in the future.
“It seems that there is good potential for raspberries,” said El-Beltagy. “It is still too early to say, but we think they could be a big hit. A Spanish raspberry expert visits regularly to ensure we are on the right track. We begin harvesting in January. We should have small volumes to start with, and then we'll build from there.'
