Capespan has reported a strong performance during the South African stonefruit season with new cultivars and increased UK business bolstering it in a tough year.
The company expects to increase its stonefruit packing to 2.25 million cartons this season, up from 2.1m during the 2009 season. The South African industry as a whole is likely to pack around 13m cartons in 2010, up from 12.8m last year.
Capespan Exports commercial manager for stonefruit and grapes, Niel Hugo, confirmed that the company was expanding its 2010 stonefuit offering. The intention is to grow year-on-year volumes to 2.5m cartons by 2012 and 3m by 2015.
He said: “Although there’s been rain and some hail, it’s a good crop and demand is strong. The worrying factor is of course the recessionary conditions, as well as the buoyant rand versus our trading currencies.
“But with excellent product quality, supply continuity, new cultivars to our traditional basket and even market distribution, we’ll still see a first-class season.”
Hugo said because of the robust rand, airfreight was more viable then previous seasons and thus the company would step up use of this transport mode to catch the favourably early market in the UK, with Europe given a gap until the market clears its overhang.
The company also reported its punnet sales in the UK had increased by between 25 and 35 per cent in the last year and that the UK received 35 per cent of all of its stonefruit.
Hugo added: “The escalated business with UK retailers is largely to do with interest in newer, improved cultivars across categories such as apricots, nectarines and plums.”
