Spanish lemon exporters meeting the required quality standards will benefit from being able to use a new logo showing they have achieved certified exporter status granted by their trade organisation Ailimpo.
“We have just launched this logo for the new season,” said José Antonio García, Ailimpo director general. “It is in order to identify exporters that that meet the required standards and it enhances traceability. There are 26 exporters who will be using it this season on lemons and we are already working on the protocols to launch a similar certification for grapefruit exporters in 2011.”
García is already forecasting an early start to the Spanish lemon season in the UK. He told FPJ: “The position of Spanish lemons in the UK is strong. Usually we don’t start until the beginning of October, but this year lemons are running a little ahead of schedule and we should start in about the third week of September. We think we will have quite a clear run at the market as South Africa and Argentina are both likely to finish their season promptly due to lower volumes this year.”
Meanwhile, the Spanish anticipate that disease issues in Florida will increasingly open up opportunities for them in grapefruit exports to the UK and other European markets. García said: “The Floridians are forecasting that in five years time their grapefruit output will fall by about 40 per cent. There is an opportunity for us to fill that gap. We do not need to see our output or acreage increase on 50,000 tonnes - a level that has remained stable over the past seven years - but just to see profitability return to the sector.”
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