Ever since Sir Walter Raleigh returned from America with a bag of potatoes, the British have welcomed fresh produce from the US.
Despite the constrictions of distance and import duties, US exports are always there when we need them to both supply several key crops and to fill niche segments during periods when other countries’ crops are short.
“Trade patterns are increasingly polarised into organised strategic partnerships on the one hand, and spot-trading opportunities on the other,” explains the US Department of Agriculture’s London’s spokesperson.
“US growers have a large domestic market and, particularly in the Pacific Northwest, the Far East market to distract them. Finding the right partners, and maintaining strong trans-Atlantic relationships, is the key to ensuring that US growers and packhouses have the right product, packaged in the right way, at the right price and at the right time for the UK market.”
Customs data for fresh fruit imports from the US to the UK shows a marked reduction of over 30 per cent in 2011, reflecting the near 50 per cent decrease in US apple business, due to issues such as the use of morpholine and diphenylamine in fruit waxes, according to data from the USDA. “The outlook for 2012 is stable, with just a two per cent dip reported for January to July 2012 shipments, compared to the same period last year. However, it is worth noting that UK-US import figures are not the full story, since they do not reflect any trans-shipment from Rotterdam,” says the spokesperson.
Fresh vegetable shipments from the US have a more favourable outlook for 2012, since direct imports have doubled in the first half of the year. USDA data shows that asparagus exports to the UK were up 80 per cent in January to July this year to cover for the loss to early British asparagus.
Tree nuts, such as almonds, are also doing better this year - up seven per cent January-July - with a good quality crop and relatively stable weather in California.
Apple exports from the US are expected to be down this coming season since weather patterns have severely affected East Coast producers. The New York Apple Association has warned that the UK apple market will be extremely short of Empire apples in the coming season as crop volumes hit an all-time low. After extensive frost and hail damage across New York state, output will be reduced to its lowest level since the variety was first grown commercially some 50 years ago.
New York’s apple crop as a whole is 52 per cent down year-on-year, according to the latest industry forecast, released at last week’s Apple Outlook conference in Chicago.
However, Empire has been particularly badly affected. Jim Allen, president of the New York Apple Association, believes that the Empire crop is as much as 80 per cent smaller than last year and warns UK and European buyers that availability is going to be an issue. “In addition to the smaller crop, quality has been compromised by the poor weather, further reducing the supply of exportable fruit. The storms and the cold snap seemed to pick out Empire orchards as they travelled across the state and there is obvious concern that supplies will also fall short of demand on the domestic market,” says Allen.
Pacific Northwest producers in California and Washington State have fared better and may even meet or exceed last year’s record export figures, ensuring availability of Pink Lady and Red Delicious in the UK, according to the USDA.
A similar picture exists for American cherry harvests - east of the Mississippi, in states that experienced the spring freezes, much of the tart cherry crop was lost. However, Washington, California and Oregon, where sweet cherries are predominantly grown, have enjoyed an export shipment record in 2012, despite worries about rain damage.
As for pears, Northwest pear producers are expecting a clean-skinned crop with good fruit size this year. “Most of the adverse weather that hurt the apple crops this year were in the Midwest and East coast. The Northwest had a good growing season with a crop close to a five-year average,” says Jeff Correa, international marketing director at Northwest Pears.
However, American producers face the same challenges as British ones when it comes to labour. US Northwest pear growers fear a potential labour shortage as another big crop - 19.3m cartons - is anticipated this season.
Speaking to the American fresh produce magazine The Packer, Dan Kelly, assistant manager with Washington Growers Clearing House, which collects data for about 2,000 grower members across the state, said: “The one issue that we’re running into is will we have enough labour to pick it?” Employing enough people to harvest the crop is the most daunting hurdle growers face each year, but the labour pinch is especially harsh in big crop years, such as last year’s record 20.6m cartons in Washington.
Some of the concern has been blunted by a large cherry harvest during the summer, which often provides an indication of how many workers will be available to pick pears, says Kelly. “I must say, though, that with the cherry deal, which looks like a record crop, labour hasn’t been a huge problem.”
Over in Florida, the citrus season has got off to a good start, with tangerines and grapefruit crops being picked at present. A lot of it will remain in the domestic market in the next few weeks, and some shipments will also be made to the European market, according to Mike Yetter at the Florida Department of Citrus.
“Crop levels are good. We receive anecdotal information from our growers and the reports indicate we are looking at around the same crop levels as last year - 18.8 million boxes of grapefruit,” he says. “In the first week of November you should start seeing Florida grapefruit in your supermarkets.”
The juicy fruit will no doubt receive a warm welcome, as Florida grapefruit is considered the sweetest of its kind. Yetter says UK export remains as important as ever. “The UK is our second-largest market in Europe after France and it’s important because British consumers recognise the nutritional value of citrus. So it’s a market that is very much suited to our product.” -
PMA Fresh Summit 2012
PMA’s Fresh Summit 2012 promises to be “a content-packed weekend of workshops, speakers, networking and of course, the expo.” Organisers also urge visitors not to miss Future-Focused Friday - a day of education and networking.
PMA has streamlined the schedule, eliminating Monday, and allowing attendees to maximise their time and be back in the office at the beginning of the following week.
Visitors will be able to see the newest trends in consumer preferences, produce and floral packaging, foodservice, transportation, technology and merchandising; meet the winners of the PMA Impact Award which recognises trendsetters in produce and floral packaging; tap into future talent and meet this year’s emerging leaders as they complete their capstone course and graduate during a Fresh Summit ceremony; take part in some of the 18 educational sessions, focused on the hottest and most important industry topics; and meet potential customers from all over the world by taking part in an endless array of networking opportunities, from the Welcoming Reception, to the PMA Foundation Women’s Fresh Perspectives Leadership Breakfast and Young Professionals reception. -
The event takes place 26-28 October in Anaheim, California.
For more information, visit www.freshsummit.com.
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