Jazz apples

The European Jazz apple crop is getting off to a slow start this season, according to Tony Fissette of Enzafruit New Zealand Continent, but the company expects volumes to be on a par with last year's.

'The real volumes are a little late in arriving,' he told FreshPlaza. “The numbers will probably increase around mid-November.'

Fissette said that quality would be high this year, despite sizes being a little smaller due to the bad weather conditions.

'We’ll have to wait and see what the season will bring, as the harvest isn’t all in yet,' he said. 'But prices are good and demand exceeds supply.'

Total production from France and Italy has been forecast at 17,000 tonnes, with Germany the main export market, followed by the UK.