In mid-January, Belgian importer Special Fruit will commence the sixth season of Calinda strawberries, with promising signs right from the start, according to corporate identity officer Sarah Hellemans.
The new plants are bearing their first fruit in optimal conditions, she said. “So we can look forward to a crunchy spring of top strawberries,” she added.
This season, Calinda volumes are expected to reach a volume of around 5,500 tonnes, produced in the Mediterranean region, in Spain, Morocco and Egypt.
'The strawberry not only has a deep red iconic shape and a sweet, juicy taste, but it turns out to be super healthy too,” Hellemans stated.
Special Fruit pointed to research from 2019 by the Andalusian Institute for Research & Training in Agriculture (IFAPA), which showed that the Calinda variety had the highest vitamin C and antioxidant content of all the Huelva varieties.
The company also highlighted the variety’s green credentials, with all its growers either joined up or committed to join GlobalGAP’s SPRING audit system, which supervises the legal use of water in the Doñana area.
'We are delighted that we are on the same page with all our growers,” said Polina Valkanova, product manager Calinda.“Our growers have been working with the Calinda variety for several years now and are therefore very experienced. A wonderful collaboration that can only lead to a beautiful product.”
