Production of the two main pear varieties in Italy, Abate Fetel and Williams, is set to be significantly lower this coming season compared with 2014, according to new figures released by the marketing and research organisation Centro Servizi Ortofrutticoli (CSO).
In Emilia-Romagna, which accounts for more than two-thirds of Italy’s total pear production, the Abate Fetel crop is forecast to be a little over 250,000 tonnes this season, around 10 per cent down on the previous year.
Williams production, meanwhile, is likely to amount to around 100,000 tonnes, according to CSO’s data. That’s a 5 per cent fall on last season and 9 per cent less than the average for the past few years.
“So far, the forecast data show overall production is normal but it should be underlined however that certain summer varieties already being harvested could lead to the final figure being revised downwards,” commented Gianni Amidei, president of the Ferrara-based consortium OI Pera.
For other minor varieties, however, it is expected that volumes will in fact rebound following a downturn in output during 2014.
In the coming days, further updates on the CSO forecasts based on the first period of harvesting are due to be published.
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