Prospects for the European pear season look promising this year, with warm temperatures in April bringing on the flowering period earlier than usual and the challenges facing the continent this summer - rain and cooler temperatures in northern Europe and hot weather in the south - failing to knock the category. European volumes have dipped, overall, but supply will meet demand.
Provisional figures for pear production in the European Union, released on August 3, show that Italy is still at the number-one spot, with 876,000 tonnes anticipated this season, followed by Spain, which is expected to produce 453,000t, Belgium with 280,000t, the Netherlands at 250,000t, France at 218,000t, and Portugal at 157,000t.
The forecast anticipates that, overall, the new European pear season will see a three per cent drop in supply, with Italy expecting a nine per cent decrease, Spain predicting a 15 per cent slump, France estimating an 11 per cent drop, and Portugal reporting a 10 per cent decline.
The Netherlands has forecast a seven per cent increase and Belgium is expected to see a four per cent rise. The UK, which is anticipating a 29,000t crop, will see production climb seven per cent.
Conference is a UK favourite and is imported from Europe for nearly 52 weeks of the year. Williams comes on line in volume from August to November, with Italian product available until Christmas, Rocha is in season from late August to April, and Comice is available from September to April.
“Conference is the top variety in the UK because it tends to be on the shelf for 48-52 weeks of the year,” says Ian Shakespeare, senior trading manager at Empire World Trade (EWT). “Other varieties have a more sporadic offer and have time off the shelf, so consumers are used to seeing Conference.” The variety makes up some 50-55 per cent of pears sales in the UK.
EWT imports a range of pear varieties from across Europe, including Conference and Comice from the Netherlands, Belgium and France, Williams from Spain and Italy, and Rocha from Portugal.
“Belgium and the Netherlands are our highest volume sources for pears because they are the largest producers of Conference, and we import from other European countries to get a mix of varieties to meet UK consumer demand,” says Shakespeare.
The Low Countries are key sources for pears across Europe and, with many producers in Belgium and the Netherlands opting out of apples and moving into pear production, they are an important source for the UK.
Belgium has become the third-largest pear producer in the EU, behind Italy and Spain, with production set to reach the 280,000t mark. Production of Conference pears, which makes up 87 per cent of the Belgian pear offer, has more than doubled since 1998 and has increased by 10 per cent each year for the last six years.
The main producing areas in Belgium are the Haspengouw-Hageland region in the eastern part of Flanders, and in the north-west region of Belgium, around Sint-Niklaas, between Ghent and Antwerp, where the climate is most suited to pear production.
Gisèle Joris at at Belgische Fruitveiling says the Belgian season made a strong start in the autumn. “As we have a very good crop this year - quality as well as quantity - prices are correct and the returns for growers are also good,” she says.
Belgian Conference pears are unrivalled in quality across the rest of Europe, according to Bart Wijgaerts at Belgian auction Veiling Haspengouw, but he acknowledges that the Netherlands are key competitors and, to a lesser extent, Italy and Spain.
Top-fruit producers in the Benelux countries have invested in pear production in response to market demand and better prices, according to Thom van Schaik at Dutch co-operative Fruitmasters, but he expects growth to level off soon. “Pears used to bring in more money, but apple returns have started to recover in the last few years,” he says.
“There was a switch from apples to pears, but this trend is stagnating,” agrees Guy Goffings, top-fruit specialist at Belgian auction Veiling Borgloon.
But pear production from the Low Countries will increase as the new plantings reach maturity and, with volumes set to rise steadily, the search for new markets is underway. “The switch from apples to pears will have an impact on the European market,” says Peter Davis, managing director at Davis (Louth) Ltd. “Some of the orchards have not started to bear fruit yet, and we have to bear this in mind.
“If you look at Europe as a continent, there is a massive emerging market - Russia - which loves pears, and is buying pears left, right and centre.”
Exporters have already sent product outside Europe to Hong Kong, India and the Middle East, and this is set to continue. “We are export reliant, so an increase in volume creates a demand for new markets,” says van Schaik.
Italy is the largest pear producer in Europe and makes up just under half of the European offer, but only around 15 per cent is exported.
The Emilia Romagna region, in the north of the country, produces 70 per cent of the Italian offer and was the first to receive the Protected Geographical Indication mark in 1998. The PGI pears include Abate Fetel, Conference, William, Kaiser, Decana, and Max Red Bartlett, and are grown exclusively in the provinces of Modena, Bologna Ferrara and Ravenna.
Luciano Trentini, director of Centro Servizi Ortofrutticoli (CSO), says that much of the Italian offer - with its PGI status - is unrivalled across Europe. “The Abate Fetel variety, which is produced only in the Emilia Romagna region and is well known for its elongated form, is the most important in Italy,” he says. “But William and William Rossa are the varieties most exported to the UK.
“Italy has a good relationship with the UK market,” he adds. “On the export front, there is always room to boost penetration by offering the high product quality and the food-safety requirements found in Italy.”
The Fruitness: Enjoy it! campaign singles out Italian pears and promotes the fruit across Europe, in particular in the UK, Sweden, Austria, Germany and Poland.
The spread of the pear offer across Europe means that UK importers have a range of choices, says Davis, but he says it should be more about the variety than the origin. “Spanish early-season pears, which are grown mainly in the Lérida area, do not keep, so we only source from Spain if there is a shortage - maybe 200t in a whole season,” says Davis. “The Netherlands does produce good pears but, because the product tends to be lighter in colour and slightly smaller, we decided to stay with Belgian supply. We work with Packham pears from Italy, because there is demand from the foodservice sector. The only bad experience we have had, from the whole of Europe, was when we tried to bring in Conference from eastern Germany last year, but it had been picked too late and it did not stand up.”
Conference continues to dominate the UK market, but demand for a range of other pear varieties from across Europe is gaining momentum.
The Rocha pear, which is grown in Portugal, has proven popular in the UK and, according to Ricardo Silva at Unirocha.com, the Portuguese industry has pulled out all the stops to boost both supply and demand.
“The UK market is the most important for Rocha pears,” says Silva. “The variety is well liked in the UK. It differs from other pear varieties because it is very crunchy and lasts longer. We have to continue to try to position the Portuguese pear as Class I fruit that lasts longer.”
The UK is the main market for Rocha, followed by France, Spain, Austria, Ireland, Brazil and Russia. The season stretches from August to May or June. “The harvest went well this year, like last year, but volumes were about five per cent down because of the weather in the growing season,” says Silva.
The progress made in the storage of pears across Europe over the last decade has helped to boost the category, including Conference, Rocha and Williams, as well as lesser-known lines, and grow exports to the UK. “The advances made in refrigeration and storage capacity in Europe have helped exporters meet UK requirements and demand for Conference all year round,” Shakespeare says. “The progress made over the last 10 years has been significant.”
But what impact does the European crossover over with UK pear production, and what is demand like in the UK?
Supply of pears from Europe overlaps with the UK offer from September through to January, and imports of Conference drop in that period as UK retailers switch to the home-grown offer. “UK and European supply tends to sit together rather well, but we have some customers that will only buy English fruit when it is in season, others that will not have anything but Belgian Conference, and others that want a mix of varieties,” says Davis.
UK supply has grown in recent years and, in some cases, has displaced European imports, Shakespeare adds. “UK production has become a dominant force over the last five years, and imports of Conference in the run up to Christmas have declined,” he says.
But the European market is stable this year. “Prices are going to keep moving in the right direction,” says Davis. “But, in terms of the UK offer, we must not push it before Christmas - Conference keeps well and it can be brought out in January, so the mad rush is not needed anymore. However, we must keep pears in view and continue to raise awareness about the category, whether they are produced in the UK or in Europe.”
But UK demand for pears is shaping up to look very healthy this season. A study on the awareness of the 5 A DAY initiative at 20 Lincolnshire primary schools, carried out by Davis and his team, showed that 60-70 per cent of pupils take a packed lunch to school and that pears were the second most popular fruit to be found in lunch boxes, after bananas at the top spot, and before bi-coloured apples, in third place.
“A pear that is properly ripe, which has been picked at the right time, is much sweeter than an apple and, when we visited the schools, the children were asking for pears over apples,” says Davis. “This is something we can all build on.”
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