Ready-to-eat exotic fruit importer Blue Skies has announced that it has been forced to temporarily close its facilities in Ghana, Egypt, South Africa and Brazil as a result of the volcanic ash cloud that has grounded flights across northern Europe.
UK-based Blue Skies has been unable to export its produce, as the company relies on the customary just-in-time delivery format that airfreight allows.
'The situation is putting immense pressure on the people we employ and the farmers we source from,' said company chairman and founder Anthony Pile. 'We have no guarantee of when we will be able to export again, which is a very difficult and frightening position to be in.
'Our customers and in particular (UK retailer) Waitrose have been extremely supportive,' he added. 'We are all hoping that the situation will change soon.'
The Eyjafjallajökull volcano, located in Iceland, began erupting with severity on 14 April, throwing volcanic ash several kilometres into the atmosphere – resultingin an ash cloud that has travelled southwards over Europe.
As a result of the potential damage that such a cloud can cause to aircraft, the use of airspace across a number of European nations has been either restricted or removed, withhundreds of flights cancelled.
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