Rory Byrne, CEO of Total Produce, kicked off proceedings at last week's FRESH2011 congress in Rotterdam with a discussion of the recent trends that are occuring in the industry.
He touched on the new challenges created by rising fuel costs and the economic crisis, the impact of which has been particularly profound in Greece, Portugal, Spain and Ireland.
'The economic crisis has changed people's mentality in Ireland from a can-do attitude to: can we survive the next year?' he said. 'This is a serious challenge that the industry is facing.'
A further test was to ensure that the European market remained attractive to overseas suppliers. 'South African apples used to go to Europe, but now they are going to other African markets,' he said. 'Europe needs to show that it can get a price that makes it worth sending to.'
Continued consolidation in the retail sector could exacerbate the matter, he said, suggesting that the number of retailers controlling the European market could dwindle to just 10-15.
Other markets offered more cause for optimism, he said. 'In emerging markets like India and China, consumption capacities are astonishing,' he stated, 'which is a huge opportunity for the sector.'
However, he added that the relevance of intermediaries in the supply chain was constantly being tested.
'We need to prove that we can and do add value to the chain,' he said. 'This means reducing costs and finding more efficient ways to get product to the end-user. There needs to be more investment in new varieties to capture the imagination of consumers.'
He also highlighted the opportunities offered by new technologies. 'Global smartphone sales are constantly going up despite the economy and there is an increase in online buying from smartphones,' he revealed. 'Technological advances have made things easier and we need to wake up and pay attention to this evolving technology.'
FRESH2011 attracted over 200 delegates to Rotterdam from a total of 24 countries.
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