African and South American suppliers are reconsidering their export markets as new possibilities open up both within their own continents and in the Far East.
That was the view put forward by Ludwig Theuvsen of Georg August University in Gottingen, who was presenting the results of an international supplier survey at the German Fruit & Vegetable Congress (DOGK) in Dusseldorf.
“Exporters realise there are other markets around the world,” he said. “And it’s not just Russia and China as we expected; it’s intra-continental trade, such as South Africans going to Kenya or Zimbabwe, or South American exporters looking at Mexico and Colombia.”
Western Europe’s long-established function as a ‘hub’ for fresh produce has been reduced, he added, with more direct supply from growers to countries such as Russia, rather than being delivered to western Europe for onward transport.
The high quality requirements in Europe were also identified as a challenge by suppliers, particularly issues around maximum residue levels. “Nobody has a problem with GlobalGap and so on,” Theuvsen pointed out. “It is more where individual markets [in Europe] have higher requirements than the rest.”
One third of exporters surveyed said if individual countries added specific requirements, they would seriously consider whether it was still worth supplying that market or would look elsewhere.
Theuvsen concluded that competition for product is expected to increase at a global level and that although supply to western Europe is not expected to dry up, there may be supply bottlenecks at certain times and on particular products. Prices may also see an adjustment.
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