Turkish strawberry season started a month early due to hot weather

There was an early start for the Turkish strawberries this year. Thanks to hotter weather, the strawberries were harvested last month already, when they usually would’ve started last week. Volumes have been a little slow, but with Valentine’s Day coming up, demand is expected to increase soon. According to…

€15 million investment in vegetable processing

The Belgian-owned company Sugo Food Kft. launched the construction of a new vegetable processing facility in Baja, Bács-Kiskun County in Southern Hungary, reports the news portal Magyar Mezőgazdaság. The development of the new processing facility at the company’s headquarters is the first phase of a…

Venezuela's vegetable sector's production capacity decreased by 75%

Leida Lovera, the director of vegetables of the Confederation of Associations of Agricultural Producers of Venezuela (FEDEAGRO), said that the country's horticultural sector's…

“We really didn’t expect to be in this situation almost a year on"

Wholesalers have had to adapt many times in the last 12 months to cope with lockdowns and different levels of restrictions. It has been no different for Dundee wholesaler Les Turriff who at the height of the first lockdown the company was doing 1200 box deliveries a week, since then it has been a bit up…

Dutch top export product is horticulture

Despite the coronavirus crisis, Dutch agricultural exports grew by an estimated 1 percent in 2020 relative to the previous year. Total goods exports declined by approximately 7 percent. This is reported by Wageningen Economic Research (WUR) and Statistics Netherlands (CBS) on the basis of joint research…

“We removed winter strawberries from our shelves, to please our clients”

On January 6th, Yoann Alarçon shared on Twitter his first decision as the Manager of Traditional and Fresh Products at Carrefour, which is to eliminate the strawberry offer in January in all Carrefour supermarkets. Yoann Alarçon’s decision on Twitter A highly symbolic decision which has not failed to provoke…

The Moroccan tomato is gaining more and more ground on Spain in the European market

Morocco is gaining more and more ground on Spain in the European tomato market. In the period between January and November of the last five years, Spanish tomato sales to the…

DSV builds integrated logistics centre in Stockholm, Sweden

Located close to the airport, railway and motorway, DSV’s new site in Rosersberg north of Stockholm offers an entire range of transport and logistics services and will be ready for use by the end of 2021. The traffic around Stockholm is particularly dense during rush hours and in addition to its…

Delays and red tape causes food shortages at British supermarkets in Spain

Supermarkets that sell British products in Andalucía have reported problems with deliveries of fresh stock since 1 January. It seems, however, that Brussels doesn’t want to…

Roy Morgan Single Source Australia

The rise of Aldi in Australia

Twenty years ago, on January 25 2001, a virtually unknown German supermarket chain quietly opened its first stores in Australia. At the time, there were two two stores; one in Sydney’s inner-west suburb of Marrickville, the other in the outer south-west, near Bankstown Airport. They were small, about a quarter the size of a…

Czech bill boosting domestic food in supermarkets might conflict with EU regulations

Last week, Czech lawmakers approved legislation requiring shops to sell mainly domestically made food that would benefit Czech producers. This action will potentially put the…

What changes for the Italian fresh produce sector after Brexit

After finally reaching the Brexit deal, the trade of agricultural and food products between the EU and the UK has also been regulated. The UK is worth €3.4 billion and is the fourth market for Italy. The essential elements of the deal include the absence of custom duties and the ongoing protection of…

Eggplant prices remain sky-high; zucchini and spinach also still expensive

As the days go by, the sharp rise in the price of vegetables in Spain, a consequence of the cold and bad weather in the main growing areas, has leveled off somewhat, although…

Top-selling fruits and vegetables in Israel

The most frequently sold fruits and vegetables in Israel are tomatoes and cucumbers, followed by onions and potatoes. Best-sold fruits were bananas and apples. The Israeli…

Japanese strawberry farm now sells local varieties online

Ando Farm in Saitama Prefecture usually does a brisk business with its picking farm, where visitors can enjoy their delicious strawberries. Some of their varieties are only…

New Dutch agricultural record of EUR 95 billion, despite COVID-19

In 2020, the value of agricultural exports from the Netherlands increased by about one percent compared to 2019. That was despite the global coronavirus pandemic. Total goods exports declined by about seven percent last year. This is reported by the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) and Wageningen…

Vietnam: Vegetables and fruits exports reached $3 billion in 2020

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the export value of vegetables and fruits in 2020 reached 3.26 billion USD, a decrease of 13% compared to 2019. China ranks the first import market of Vietnam’s vegetables and fruits, accounting for about 56% of the market share. Vegetables…

Biden's immigration reform is "fundamentally different" to emancipate farmworkers

The comprehensive immigration reform bill recently introduced by President Biden is "fundamentally different from what any other president has done to emancipate farmworkers," stated the United Farm Workers and the UFW Foundation. It is unique in granting immediate legal status to eligible farm workers…

Vietnam: Lam Dong cooperates to prepare supply of vegetables, flowers for Tet market

The delegation of the Department of Industry and Trade of Ho Chi Minh City, on January 22, worked with the competent authority of Lam Dong Province on the plan to supply fresh fruits, vegetables, and flowers to the HCMC market on the occasion of Lunar New Year. At the meeting, the leaders of the…

Iran, Qatar and Oman sign agreement in the field of plant quarantine and protection

The council of Ministers agreed to sign an interim agreement on plant protection between the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the governments of Qatar and the…

Rwanda wants to work with UAE to expand horticultural exports

According to Rwanda’s Ambassador to Dubai, the former is looking to engage the United Arab Emirates in order to expand its horticultural exports. Reports by local media in…

Russia's new tomato export quotas welcomed by Turkish growers

Turkish tomato exporters and producers welcomed Russia's decision to increase that nation’s tomato exports quota by 50,000 tons. They had been waiting for this decision as the…

California celery market easing off somewhat

The market on celery is easing down as supplies become more available. “We’re coming out of a little lull on the supply side over the last three or four weeks. We’re getting back into fairly normal supplies here in the middle of January,” says Russ Widerburg of Oxnard, CA’s Boskovich Farms Inc. “We were…

"Cold weather in Huelva has caused some delays in strawberry production"

"The Spanish strawberry season started earlier than usual. The first small volumes arrived at the end of November / beginning of December because more was planted in pots,” says Polina Valkanova of Special Fruit. “After the early start to the season, the cold weather in recent weeks has caused a delay in…

Tesco boss typifies Brexit disruptions 'a challenge, not a crisis'

According to Tesco boss Ken Murphy, it has seen some disruption to food supplies in Northern Ireland since trading arrangements with the EU changed on 1 January.  "We see this as…

Ample organic cauliflower on the market

There is strong volume currently of organic cauliflower. Cauliflower supplies are coming from Yuma, AZ and El Centro, CA right now. “There are great supplies out of the desert California regions mainly due to generally cooler weather over Christmas slowing down succession plantings. At this point in time…

Germany increased tomato imports from Morocco by 246.1%

According to data from Hortoinfo based on the Euroestacom statistical service (Icex-Eurostat) data for the January-November period of the last five years, Germany has…

Chinese strawberries from Dandong will enter a peak sales period in February

Dandong is one of China's largest strawberry production areas with an annual production volume of more than 200,000 tons of strawberries. The soil and water levels in the area are extremely suitable for strawberry production. Dandong is where the river and the sea meet, and more than 70% of the area is…

"Scarcity of Asian vegetables; situation of other Spanish greenhouse vegetables more relaxed"

The cold weather with snow and rain recorded recently has been taking a toll on the Spanish vegetable production. "Last week was a difficult one. There was suddenly scarcity in the production from Murcia and it became more expensive," says sales manager Paul van Groningen, of the firm Greenfood Iberica,…

Slightly smaller acreage, stronger plants and varietal trials

According to the initial report of the 2020/21 berry campaign from the Prices and Markets Observatory of the Government of Andalusia, the strawberry acreage in the province of…

Rwanda: High airfreight charges threaten horti export competitiveness

Rwandan horticulture exporters have appealed for lower airfreight charges after an increase in the transport fees has adversely affected their profits. The increase of the…

Straight to the Source: A direct line between growers and chefs

Straight to the Source provides a direct link between Australian and New Zealand producers and food enthusiasts, food producers and chefs. Founded by Tawnya Bahr, Lucy Allon…

Sarya Holdings will import and distribute a number of brands from around the world

Sarya Holdings launched Smart Acres last year Sarya Holdings, the parent company which recently launched the UAE’s latest hydroponic vertical farming concept, Smart Acres, has launched its all-new health-conscious food line and has secured partnerships with a number of brands from around the world. Set…

‘Emergency’ measure planned at UK ports

Empty trucks crossing the Channel to restock will be allowed to skip queues at key ports, as government concerns that the disruptions are set to worsen are mounting. Up to 300…

Meal kits and home cooking help move herbs

Both supply and demand of cooking herbs is strong and it looks to stay that way for the near future. Herb supplies should see strong production through to summer. “The weather is starting to turn a little bit, at least where herbs are being grown, and now we’re coming into the strongest part of the…

Meager end to 2020 tomato year

With the cold weather in Spain, tomato prices skyrocketed in early 2021. Not bad for those growers who are in production elsewhere. Towards the holidays at the end of 2020, prices were not bad due to good demand. Nevertheless, a glance at the figures shows that the end of the tomato year 2020 was somewhat 'meager', with a price…

Pakistan: Sindh province seeks federal ban on tomato import and opening up of onion exports

The government of Sindh  province has wrote a letter to the federal government seeking a ban on the import of tomatoes, while demanding action for opening up the export of onions.…

Nigeria: Price of tomatoes drops in Enugu major markets

The prices of tomatoes have dropped markedly in major markets in Enugu metropolis. A News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) market survey shows that a big basket of UTC specie of the…

Horticulture winter market in Ireland

The recent level 5 lockdown saw an increase in retail sales however, it wasn’t at the level of the first lockdown in April. Unfortunately, again those depending on the food…

"Halted soft fruit production clears up market uncertainties"

The recent snows in Spain didn't reach Huelva on the coast. Nonetheless, the current icy weather has severely affected soft fruit production in the area. "There were many uncertainties on the market. These have all been resolved now because there's no product available," observes Jan van Bergeij. He's…

Lack of foodservice demand pressures Brussels sprouts market

Supplies of Brussels sprouts are normal though the lack of foodservice demand is still affecting the market. Tony Wisdom of Skagit Valley Farms and Valley Pride Sales in Burlington, WA notes that supplies are largely coming from Washington and California. Import supplies will begin in the spring. “And…

Fear of food shortages grows as EU truckers avoid UK ports due to Brexit

Fears over food shortages on supermarket shelves are growing as French and German delivery companies seem to be avoiding post-Brexit bureaucracy tape at UK ports in record…

Delays in the availability of baby leaves over the next few weeks

Considering the time we are living in, we can say the Christmas period has been rather lively for packed unwashed baby leaves. "We did not register the trend of previous years, but orders did increase slightly. During the Christmas period, prices dropped compared to last year also due to Covid-19, but…

US (WA): Boosting CEA through farm-to-fork project

Seattle architect Melanie Corey-Ferrini’s kiosk-style lobby pop-up concept called G2 is the ultimate in farm-to-fork dining. Protein-rich grains and greens are grown on-site…

Prices of Turkish tomatoes down in Ukraine

After the New Year, prices of imported tomatoes from Turkey have dropped rapidly in Ukraine. The main reason for this was the accumulation of a large number of unsold produce…

The future of sustainable urban agriculture

A recent podcast by Steve Wells highlighted the future of sustainable urban agriculture. Joining him during the podcast is Diana Davidson, Founder and Managing Director of Vertemis.  Agriculture is responsible for 9% of all Greenhouse Gas emissions in the UK, according to Farm Carbon Toolkit. These emissions…

Eurofins Agro strengthens cooperation with Vietnamese horticulture

Eurofins Agro has joined the Netherlands Vietnamese Horticulture Business Platform (NVHBP) as a ‘Gold Member’. Through this platform, Eurofins Agro provides knowledge and insight to growers in Vietnam. A number of Vietnamese growers has now gained experience, such as the Sapa Hitech lily nursery. Thanks…

Israel: Strawberry season offers new tastes

There are about 12 different strawberries varieties grown in Israel. Varying in levels of sweetness and moisture. "Today there are varieties that are much sweeter, varieties…

How to build a culture of inclusivity in the workplace

This week’s virtual town hall discussed inclusive leadership, and how to leverage diversity and inclusion in your business for success. Doug Bohr, PMA’s Executive Director of Center of Growing Talent, says: “In today’s rapidly changing world, attracting and engaging talent with diverse perspectives,…

"Calm seems to have returned to the Spanish vegetable trade after absurd month"

"Last month was something else," sighs Kees Havenaar of the Spanish export company Frutas Luna from Almeria. He reviews a month in which the Corona virus, Brexit and Filomena threw quite the spanner in the works of the Spanish greengrocer. "Things seem to have settled down now." "It all started with the problems…

For many commodities, lower supplies at this time seem to moderate prices and demand

The holiday season has ended and the associated demand for certain types of produce has passed, even as several growing areas will end their harvest seasons or face seasonal gaps in production. As closures and restrictions still affect schools, restaurants, and other public dining venues, it is likely…

2020: A year like no other for the produce department

November and December sales were dominated by the holidays along with the consumers’ response to rapidly rising new Covid-19 cases across many states. Some states and cities enacted renewed shelter-in-place mandates which impacted grocery retailing in many ways. In December, consumers’ trip frequency…

Pharr International Bridge plans for major expansion in coming years

The Pharr International Bridge, which provides a direct connection between the US and Mexico and is located in Pharr, Texas, has been seeing major expansion in recent years with more plans for expansion and innovation currently being carried out. The bridge services three major sectors: produce, energy…

First blueberry plants released from Fall Creek South Africa nursery

Fall Creek South Africa has reached an exciting milestone at their new blueberry nursery in Paarl, the Western Cape, with the release of the first plants of AtlasBlue® ‘FCM12-045’, BiancaBlue® ‘FCM12-087’ and JupiterBlue® ‘FCM12-131’. Specifically designed boxes ensure the quality of transported plants…

Cambodian vegetable production at 716,000 tons in 2020

As the government efforts to shore up the agricultural sector in these times of Covid-19 have been quite successful, Cambodia’s vegetable production for the domestic market…

Community group buying has brought Big Tech disruption to China’s smaller cities

In China, a community group buying is the latest big e-commerce trend, with consumers ordering fresh food on their mobile phone and companies such as Didi, Meituan and…

Morocco: Wholesale fruit and vegetable prices for Casablanca market

This is an overview of the weekly wholesale prices for the most commonly sold fruit and vegetable products in the wholesale market in Casablanca, Morocco. These are minimum and maximum selling prices in dirhams per kg. Of the 38 wholesale fruit and vegetable markets in Morocco, the Casablanca market is…

Empty produce shelves predominantly due to Spanish veg shortage

There have been reports in the UK’s national media about empty produce shelves at the supermarkets, which they say are caused by Brexit but this may not be the full story.…

Nigerian cucumber market shows high demand

Cucumber farming is a booming agricultural subsector in Nigeria. The demand for cucumbers is high and it shows no signs of decreasing, although different varieties are being…

“Egypt will not be able to significantly contribute to solve the Spanish vegetable shortage”

The shortages of Spanish vegetables has led to a steep increase of prices for cucumbers, cauliflowers and zucchinis, among other produce. When looking at alternative suppliers…

Fresh Produce Association of the Americas lauds Congressional letter

With billions of dollars at stake, the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas commends Senators Sinema (D-AZ) and Moran (R-KS) and Representatives Schweikert (R-AZ) and…

"There will be a limited supply of lettuces throughout January"

Last week's rains, low temperatures, and frosts in Murcia have limited the supply and increased the prices of lettuce and leafy vegetables. "We started the year with temperatures that were lower than in Finland", stated Gines Navarro, from the sales department of the Murcian company Agridemur, which specializes…

Despite foodservice closures, lettuce sees consistent demand

Lettuce is currently being grown and shipped from the Imperial Valley, Yuma and Coachella districts. For Coastline Family Farms, whose winter headquarters are in Brawley, CA, supplies are growing in the Imperial Valley and Yuma: “This includes our romaine, green leaf, red leaf, iceberg and butter…

Chinese tomato market may be lower than last year during Chinese New Year

Tomato and chilli, two everyday vegetables in China, are seeing a big difference in their market prices. Compared with the farm gate prices of 3-6 yuan per half a kilo that…

Adapting to the new normal

There is no question that the world has changed immensely in the space of just 12 months. The unprecedented scale of the COVID-19 pandemic has touched the lives of every New Zealander and the…

Spain's fresh fruit and vegetable exports in 2020: fewer kgs, more euros

The upward trend in Spanish fresh fruit and vegetable exports didn't continue last year. At least not when it came to volume. In 2020, Spain exported 12.8 million tons of fresh fruit and vegetables. That's four percent less than in the record 2019 year. Spanish fruit exports actually shrank by seven…

Delayed arrival of migrant workers worries Niagara greenhouse growers

New requirements of air travellers to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result before boarding a plane to Canada are proving to be a barrier for temporary foreign…

More home cooking leads to boost in herb demand

Supplies of cooking herbs are ample—enough so to meet the increased demand retailers have seen recently. With consumer demand for herbs surging, Milas Russell, general manager with North Shore Greenhouses Inc. in Thermal, CA says the company’s worked to keep retailers in need stocked with product as well…

Threat of shortages on fruit and veg markets due to the intense cold in Spain

Agricultural producers and companies in the fruit and vegetable sector in the Spanish provinces of Almería and Granada are not having a moment of truce. Due to storm Filomena, record minimum temperatures are being recorded across Spain; also in the south. Rain and snow have been falling incessantly…

Rwanda pepper growers struggle to find market

Currently, Rwandan pepper growers are finding it hard to enter new markets for their products. Although RwandaFresh Brand regularly reports on exports of fresh products from…

SmartParc

UK: SmartParc submits plans for a 155-acre food processing campus

SmartParc announced that it has submitted plans for its 155-acre high-tech food production campus in former Celanese near Spondon. The planned installation of 1.8 m2 will supply production facilities, start-up incubation equipment and a prospective location for a center of excellence in food production…

DUP: Brexit deal for Northern Ireland is an ‘unmitigated disaster’

Britain left the European Union’s single market and customs union on New Year’s Eve, introducing a raft of paperwork and customs declarations for those businesses that import…

Cambodian chilli exports up 27% in 2020

The Cambodian government’s policy to boost productivity performance in the agricultural sector has improved the nation’s exports markedly, with shipments of fresh chilli…

Valstar shows commitment to reducing food waste with video series

Valstar has launched a video series on its sustainability efforts. Every month, the company shares a new video featuring one of their employees sitting down with a specialist to discuss a new sustainability topic. This month that topic is food waste, and the latest video is now available for viewing!…

"2020 wasn't a good year for Bulgarian vegetable farming"

The year 2020 proved to be unfavorable for Bulgarian vegetable cultivation. That's according to data from the Dutch National Statistical Institute. Overall output will fall by…

Serbia: Duty-free export of fruits and veggies to the EU for another five years

Fruit and vegetable producers and exporters from Serbia and other Western Balkan countries will continue to sell their goods to the EU customers duty-free in the next five…

Increasing prices for Sicilian vegetables

It has been a fluctuating season for Sicilian vegetables, though things have been improving between the end of the past year and the first ten days of January 2021, especially for zucchini and round eggplants.  Giovanni Astuto FreshPlaza talked about it with Giovanni Astuto, president of OP Platinum in Ragusa,…

Standardization to build a vertical farming industry or building customized farms that keep cost high?

There are a lot of new ideas being trialed within the indoor farming space. “One of the hurdles I see is that it’s expected that there are standardized products available that will fit the new vertical farming systems being developed. Many farmers request that manufacturers develop custom components and…

“Whilst the government has had years to plan for this they have given the industry a matter of weeks"

The UK and EU agreed a last minute Brexit deal on 24th December, which has been widely welcomed by the fresh produce industry. It means goods can still be traded tariff free…

Down history lane: Tomato traffic via port of Weymouth in the 1960s

The Dorset Echo gave us a reminder of the Channel Islands tomato traffic, which was such a prominent feature in the life of the port. It features pictures of the docks and people unloading cargo onto a waiting train. The pictures get you on a trip down memory lane, remembering Weymouth as the busy port…

‘Recent ban on tomato exports to Russia was very unexpected’

In a recent meeting, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, stated that the recent Russian ban on tomato exports was very unexpected. En.trend.az reported…

Kenyan vegetable export earnings dropped to US220 mln in 2020

In 2020, Kenya's vegetable exports have dropped to 24 billion shillings (about US$220 million) as compared to US$248 million the year before. CEO of the Fresh Produce…

Peru extends ban on the entry of transgenic products until 2035

The Peruvian Congress promulgated Law No. 31111 on Wednesday, January 6, which extends the ban on the entry and production of transgenic products in the country by 15 more…

New agri-tech startup Nile: online marketplace between producers and commercial buyers

Founded in February 2020 by Louis de Kock, Eugene Roodt, and Rick Kleinhans, Nile is an agritech startup that connects vegetable and fruit producers directly with commercial…

Year 2021 brings new challenges to the tomato and vegetable market

"With the exception of the first lockdown, 2020 was by no means an exciting year, and indeed ended rather sluggishly. On the other hand, 2021 didn't start under the best auspices. Generally speaking, the festive season did not boost the markets as much as we hoped. We have to deal with the dynamics of…

Survey finds out which vegetables are most beloved in each state

The team at Gurney’s Seed & Nursery Co. decided to do conduct a survey to discover the vegetable preferences of Americans in each state. The team surveyed over 4,500 Americans and found that the preferences of Americans run span across a wide variety of vegetables. "Americans showed up in support of a variety…

The first fruits of Huelva's new strawberry season have already reached the markets

Last week producers from the province of Huelva started harvesting the San Andrea and Fortuna strawberry early varieties; the first strawberries of the 2020/2021 campaign.…

Spanish fruit and veg exports worth 14,200 million Euro in 2020

Despite the challenges in 2020, the Spanish export of fresh fruits and vegetables has grown by 5% in terms of value, reaching a total of 14,200 million Euro, while the volume…

These farms have big plans for 2021

When the pandemic exposed major issues with our lengthy food supply chain, in the form of shipment delays and inadequate demand forecasting, local vertical farms and indoor growing operations (aka controlled environment greenhouses in urban or rural locations) were called upon to fill in the gaps in a…

“We are not seeing any problems yet”

The UK and Europe are now just a few days into the new Brexit era and things in the trade are still calm, there have been a few reports of orders being delayed by a day, but…

January-November 2020: Azerbaijani tomato exports up

Azerbaijan increased its tomato exports by 13.3 percent during the period January to November 2020. In this period, Azerbaijan exported 176,000 tons of tomatoes worth $190.4…

New Grab-N-Go bags for hot peppers see popularity in niche markets

This year, importer Delina Fresh has been seeing an interesting growth in the Latin and Oriental markets in the United States. The company imports a wide variety of products from Ecuador, Costa Rica, Honduras, Brazil and the Dominican Republic and has year-round programs for all of their products. The…

"Cautious non-European herb farming could lead to shortages"

In Europe, the closure of the hospitality sector has greatly affected fresh herb sales. This is evident to Jacqueline Monden. She and Christ Monden run De Kruidenaer herb farm in the Netherlands. "Hospitality businesses can't open their doors to the public over Christmas. The only alternatives are…

"Even in the past, corona year, the Netherlands was still a global fresh fruit and vegetable player"

In 2020, the Netherlands proved it again - this country is a global fresh fruit and vegetable player. Overseas sales of these products rose by six percent, to €12,9 billion.…

Chinese red chilli prices rising to 40 yuan per kilo

Chilli prices on the market have soared recently, reaching as high as 40 yuan per kilo for red chilis. It is widely believed in the industry that the imbalance between supply…

British pound faces rough weather as lockdowns spoil post-Brexit party

There seems to be a bumpy ride ahead for the British pound as tighter lockdown measures are expected to offset Brexit deal optimism that propelled the currency above $1.37…

Nigeria sees drop in tomato prices - markets witness supply glut

Tomato sellers in Enugu, the capital of Enugu State in Nigeria, attribute the current drop in the price of their produce to seasonal factors, as markets witness a glut of the…

Kenya: "More earnings, but huge proportion of it went to the payment of air freights"

Horticulture is the third largest foreign exchange earner and has undergone a transformation over the last 50 years garnering around 150 billion annually and contributes significantly to the Kenyan economy. The industry provides employment opportunities to about 350,000 directly and supports over six…

In Belgium, loose tomato prices top those of TOV's

The average price for loose tomatoes was recently higher than that of TOV. That was in the last week of 2020 / very early 2021 at the Belgian auction house, VBT. That was the…

Frosts in Murcia will reduce the supply of vegetables in the coming weeks

2021 has started with a drastic drop in temperatures in much of Spain, which is expected to continue throughout the week. Since the early hours of Monday, frosts have been recorded in Murcia and the south of Alicante, notably affecting crops such as artichokes, leafy vegetables, brassicas or zucchini,…

Artificial intelligence-driven platform for genome editing presented

Evogene Ltd. a computational biology company working on life-science product development across several market segments, provided today a year-end update for the CRISPR-IL…

Seaweed set to become the superfood of 2021

Waitrose reveals seaweed is set to be the must-have ingredient of 2021 - with sales up 23% when compared to last year and up an impressive 71% increase when compared to 2018. Flavour-filled and versatile, seaweed is fast-becoming a store cupboard staple for scratch cooks. As well as being used as a…

The United States simplifies the entry of cucurbits from Panama

The National Director of Plant Health of the Ministry of Agricultural Development, Olegh Aguilar, stated that the United States had eased the requirements for the entry of…

Russia to ban imports of several Moroccan agricultural products

Last week, the head of Russia's Federal Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Service Rosselkhoznadzor, Sergei Dankvert, stated that Russia will ban tomato and pepper…

More companies from Azerbaijan allowed to export tomatoes to Russian Federation

Russia's phytosanitary watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor has lifted the ban on the imports of tomatoes grown in Azerbaijan for 15 more enterprises. The decision has been in force from…

"Cooperative came to mean something last year"

“It was hectic in the run-up to Christmas. Yet, even in the week before Christmas, we could deliver many products. We always have to wait and see how big the demand is. But last year, it was especially difficult to predict. Unpredictability is one of the words we can use to describe last year," says Luc…

Saudi Customs impose 15 percent customs duty on imported vegetables

After a decision of the Council of Ministers to make amendments in the customs regulations in a way that protects and encourages local industries and agricultural products,…

UK demand for Indian vegetables to drop by 15-20%

With restaurants and hotels closed due to the ongoing lockdowns, Indian vegetable exporters expect demand from the UK to fall 15 to 20 per cent. Exporters said India exports…

India: Drop in vegetable prices to continue until late January

Due to great yields of vegetables across Maharashtra and neighbouring Karnataka, prices of almost all vegetables come down significantly in Pune. Traders in the city’s…

NZ strawberries super cheap at the moment

Strawberries are super cheap at the moment and the industry is calling on people to buy up large, while they are at their best. The reason this is happening, is that…

"Growers have adapted their production and sales to keep providing essentials"

"To say that 2020 has been a year of unprecedented uncertainty and disruption feels like a huge understatement", the board with TomatoesNZ says. "However, I believe that fresh…

Spanish fruit and vegetable exports fall by 4% in terms of volume, but value is up by 9%

Between January and October 2020, Spanish fresh fruit and vegetable exports stood at 10.3 million tons; 4% less than in the same period of 2019. However, their value reached…

The UK's growing fewer and fewer vegetables, while importing more and more

In December/January, the United Kingdom imported a third of its fresh fruit and vegetables from Spain. With seven percent, the Netherlands supplied the second most produce in those months. When you include re-exports, that rises to ten percent. Last December, those imports amounted to 150.000 tons from…

US: Online grocery delivery companies recruit extra staff to cope with spike in demand

FDA warns Amazon's Whole Foods Market for misbranding food productsThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Tuesday it has issued a warning letter to Amazon.com Inc’s Whole Foods Market for not labeling some products for the presence of food allergens, which led to a series of product recalls.…

Since 2015, Spain's fruit and veg imports from Morocco have doubled

Between January and October, the Spanish import of fruits and vegetables from Morocco has totaled 450.04 million kilos; a figure that, according to data from the statistical…

Valentyn Natalenko | Dreamstime.com

Ukraine intends to join formation of European Green Deal policies

Ukraine has already decided to build a dialogue on the European Green Deal and to engage in the policies’ development. After all, the Green Deal has a cross-sectoral dimension, i.e. it concerns not only the environment and climate ambitions but also new conditions for access to the European market, a new…

Greenhouse vegetable growers working with Leamington community to mitigate nighttime light glow

Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) are eager to engage the local municipal councils of both Kingsville and Leamington on reasonable and enforceable lighting by-laws for the greenhouse sector in the region. OGVG recognizes the legitimate community concerns with greenhouse nighttime glow. "At the…

"Moroccan tomatoes gaining ground at the expense of Spanish ones"

In the Dutch imported tomato market, Spanish products are increasingly losing ground to those from Morocco. That's according to Hagé International's Ger Kingma. "There are…

“Despite the hospitality sector being closed, herb demand's not disappointing"

At Taste Up in Belgium, they can feel Christmas approaching. "The demand for herbs has been noticeably increasing since the end of last week," says Jorne Leemans. "Sales peaked at the start of this week. These will slow down a little over the next few days until after Christmas. Then it will pick up…

Kloeg008 | Dreamstime.com

UK: Up to 30,000 workers to help reap 2021 harvest

The number of workers permitted to travel to the UK to pick and package fruit and vegetables will be increased for next year’s harvest. The Seasonal Workers Pilot, originally launched in 2019, has been extended and expanded for an additional year with 30,000 visas available for those wanting to come and…

Christmas vegetable wars at Tesco, Asda, Aldi and Lidl

In a bid to bring in more shoppers, UK supermarkets have started to cut the prices of Christmas vegetables. Asda, Tesco, Lidl, and Aldi all have special deals on a number of…

Cucumber and zucchini prices at origin fall again in Almeria

Looking at the prices published daily by Hortoinfo, and calculating an average of the different prices for each vegetable in the auctions of the province of Almería, it…

Eyes on 2021 after 'challenging strawberry year with big differences'

The dark days before Christmas have arrived. In the VG Berry greenhouses, harvest season has come to an end. Elsewhere, Royal Berry harvests in small amounts until New Year's Eve. Grower Jan van Genderen looks back while last week they've been hard at work for the season 2021 startup.  "Mainly, it was a challenging…

Taking stock of market developments

The second half of November saw plenty of developments in the market: takeovers, a booming horticulture market in China, and tomatoes really took the limelight. Let's take one more look in our penultimate year overview of 2020. Visitors of the China International Import Expo in Shanghai welcome the YOOM tomatoes…

Philippines: Greenhouse villages planned as part of “Plant, Plant, Plant” Program

The Department of Agriculture (DA), through the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI), has partnered with four barangays in Caloocan and Quezon cities for the establishment of “Greenhouse Village” in support to the urban agriculture initiative of the “Plant, Plant, Plant” Program. Key ATI officials…

USDA cites RRD Produce Co. for PACA violations

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has imposed sanctions on RRD Produce Co., Los Angeles, Calif., for violating the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act. These sanctions…

How do shoppers buy fresh tomatoes?

TomatoesNZ commissioned a Nielsen Homescan research report in August to understand fresh tomato consumers and shopper purchase dynamics. This information has been instrumental in informing domestic market promotion this summer. Key findings:5.6% value growth for tomatoes in the previous year, with…

Volumes of Mexican colored bell peppers to increase in January

The Mexican bell pepper season kicked off on time this year. Felix Peralta, Director of Integrated Logistics at SunFed shares: “Our bell peppers are grown in Sinaloa, in the Culiacan area, and the harvest started on December 15th, which is about the usual timing for the season to start.” SunFed grows…