Chilean green kiwifruit has been retailing in South Korea below cost price after imports more than doubled this season.
According to figures from Decofrut, by Week 29 Korean importers had brought 280 containers of Chilean kiwifruit into the country - a 115 per cent increase on the 130 containers imported as of week 29 in the previous year.
New Zealand kiwifruit marketer Zespri, however, has sent less fruit to Korea this year, which has offset the Chilean oversupply somewhat. As of Week 29 Korea had received 600 containers of fruit from New Zealand - a 15 per cent reduction on the 710 containers received by the same period in 2011.
The combined import volume from both Chile and New Zealand as of Week 29 has only increased five per cent from 840 containers in 2011 to 880 containers this year.
Chang Hwa Oh, the director of major Korean importer Jinwon Trading, said returns for Chilean green kiwifruit, however, had fallen below cost price and many traders were struggling to move inventory.
Earlier in the season wholesalers were buying Chilean kiwifruit by the container load, said Oh. “Last season, after August, the market demand for Chilean kiwifruit was strong but there was not enough volume. This is probably the reason why wholesale buyers have wanted to secure volumes this year,” he said.
Importers may also have been inclined to bring in fruit in higher volumes on the back of a strong Chilean grape season, said Oh. “Even though the volume of Chilean table grape imports had increased over the previous year, demand has remained strong through the season. I imagine some importers expected to see this trend with kiwifruit, also.”
Food Asia Marketing managing director John Piper said the problem has arisen from importers and exporters overreacting to a ruling that bans Zespri from striking exclusive marketing deals with major retail chains in Korea as it had done in 2011. “It can be seen that the increase in kiwifruit volumes shipped from Chile to Korea so far this season is already 50 per cent greater than that shipped over the same period in season 2010, the season immediately before that in which Zespri was found guilty of having acted illegally,” said Piper.
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