Capespan South Africa has made its first shipments of Cameo apples to India together with Mumbai-based import partner Yupaa.
The debut shipments of Cameo arrived in India this week and importer Yupaa sees good market potential for the variety, which bears similar characteristics to India’s most popular apple Red Delicious.
“We selected Cameo as a variety to trial in India because its unique characteristics make it a good fit for this market,” explained Yupaa’s head of global sourcing Parth Karvat.
“Firstly, Cameo has high pressure and firmness, which are very important given that logistics and retail are not always under the cold chain in India.”
“Secondly, the flavour is a mix between the sweet Red Delicious and Royal Gala, which is increasingly popular in India. The colour is red with stripes, which is a typical Indian preference.”
Red Delicious remains the dominant variety on India’s apple market, reflecting the profile of domestic production. But India has imported a range of new varieties from global suppliers over recent years with the rapid expansion of the market and consumers’ willingness to experiment with new options.
Supplied by Yupaa’s South African partner Capespan, the shipments of Cameo apples were grown by Target Brand Orchards and packed by Klein Dwarsfontein, which is managed by Hendrik and Yolanda Lombard.
Karvat said the retail price of Cameo would be similar to Royal Gala and Red Delicious. “The colour is not as intense as Royal Beaut, which is a high colour grade of South African Royal Gala,' he noted.
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