The first of fruit has come off the trees in New Zealand’s 2009/10 cherry season, and industry figures have said that while it’s early days yet the season is looking positive.
While the first picking is only bound for the country’s domestic market, quality and size are looking good, according to Marie Dawkins, manager of peak body Summerfruit New Zealand.
“It’s not a huge crop like last year; it’s about 85 per cent of that. But when the volume is down, it means the sizing will go up,” Ms Dawkins told Fruitnet.com as she headed down to inspect orchards in New Zealand’s southern Otago region this week.
“Things have been a little slow with the difficult weather in October. We had a bit of frost and it was an odd month. But the temperatures have picked up, and we just need a week of that and we’ll be back on target.”
New Zealand’s cherry season will not hit its stride in another month or so, but at this early stage Ms Dawkins said if all goes well the season could be a stellar one.
“It’s at that exciting stage of possibilities where everyone thinks it might be the perfect season,” she explained.
The country is looking forward to a good export season in Asia, with sales improving in markets like South Korea, Thailand and Taiwan.
New chemical residue requirements in Indonesia have curtailed some export efforts there, said Ms Dawkins, although the market is not a major one for New Zealand cherries.
China is the market drawing the most interest for future business opportunities, she explained. “People are looking more to China as an emerging market for us.”
The dollar is the sector’s biggest worry for the season. The New Zealand dollar is still flying high against many major currencies, and will add to the country’s already premium-priced cherries.
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