US-grown fresh produce has been slowly losing presence in the European Union, with exports of fruit and vegetables falling between 2005 and 2009.
This is the verdict of a new report by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which has noted a fall in fresh fruit exports to the EU of 3.3 per cent through the five-year period, while vegetable shipments dropped 8.9 per cent.
The USDA said that fruit exports to the 27 European Union member states totalled US$180m (€141m) in value through 2009, with vegetable exports bringing in around US$44m (€34m), The Packer reported.
US grapefruit shipments to Europe, an important market for the likes of Florida, fell to US$47m (€37m), in value terms last year, down from US$55m (€43m) in 2008 but actually up on US$35m (€27m) in 2005.
Meanwhile, apple sales came to US$36m (€28m), down from US$44m (€34m) in 2008, while other leading exports included berries at US$25m (€19m) last year, grapes at US$21m (€16m), and cherries at US$16m (€12m).
However, US fresh produce shipments to all countries actually jumped by 174 per cent from 1979 to 2009, totalling US$107bn (€133bn) last year.
