Three new varieties of strawberries developed in Israel are arriving on the UK marketplace in commercial quantities for the first time this season.
Yuval, Herut and Festival were in strong demand during trial shipments last season, according to the Israeli Plants Production & Marketing Board and now make up some 20 per cent of all strawberries under production in Israel. The new varieties are characterised by their elongated shape and a high 10 per cent sugar content, compared with other varieties, which average eight to 8.5 per cent sugar content.
The total strawberry yield in Israel this year is expected to reach 14,000 tonnes, of which nearly 2,600 tonnes will be exported, compared with 2,400 tonnes last year. Sales returns on the local market will amount to $17 million, and revenues from export are estimated at €9 million. In addition, Palestinian growers from the Gaza region are expected to export some 2,000 tonnes of strawberries, branded under the Coral logo, and marketed throughout Europe by Agrexco, Israel's primary fresh produce exporter.
Some 63 per cent of Israeli strawberry production is grown using natural biological predators which provide the grower with the permit to define the fruit as Bio-Strawberry, grown without the need of spraying it with chemicals. According to the Plants Board, some 80 per cent of the strawberries from Israel are air freighted to the UK, mostly to Marks & Spencer, Tesco, Sainsbury's, and Asda, among others. Other important markets are the Netherlands and Belgium, and the emerging market in Russia, which will receive several hundred tonnes of strawberries this season, which began in December and will run until June.
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