With a few weeks still to go before apple harvesting gets underway in the north-east Italian region of Trentino-South Tyrol, industry leaders insist they remain on track to expand their export business into new markets during the course of 2012/13.
Last year, the region turned out a record crop of 1.2m tonnes, whereas this season the expectation are that production will be over 20 per cent lower compared with the previous campaign.
However, leading figures in the trade are determined to keep pursuing a course of market diversification, especially given the poor situation in terms of demand and consumption levels in many of Italy's traditional European markets.
"We are constantly in search of new customers and markets," said Georg Kössler, president of the Association of South Tyrol Fruit Growers' Cooperatives (VOG).
"The Italian and German markets were, are and shall continue to be major markets in relation to the apple trade business industry in South Tyrol, despite the fact they have registered a slight fall in demand for the product."
He added: "Give the critical juncture at which we find ourselves, we are looking constantly to enter new markets such as those in the Middle East, North Africa and eastern Europe."
In order to improve their chances of success in this regard, cooperatives belonging to both VOG and VIP, the South Tyrol province's other major apple supplier, recently formed an alliance to pursue sales of apples to emerging markets like Russia and India under the trademark From the Italian Alps.
Two further cooperative groups in the neighboring province of Trentino - La Trentina and Melinda - are also actively involved in the joint venture.
"We will study these markets systematically," Kössler continued. "With the right quality and the backing of a publicity campaign for the brand, we will be in a position to meet the demand."
