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Jan Vermeiren, Exofi Fresh Market, Belgium Will there be Spanish and Turkish kiwis on the European market in 2 to 3 years?

Most of the kiwis on the Northern European market come from New Zealand, Chile, Greece, and Italy. French kiwis can also regularly be found on the wholesale market. Kiwi acreage in other Mediterranean countries, such as Turkey, Portugal, and Spain, has, however, increased significantly in the past decade. These kiwis are mainly intended for those countries' domestic markets, but exports have risen in recent years. Are there opportunities for kiwis from new countries of origin on the Northern European market?

Kiwi exports from Spain, Portugal and Turkey (source, FAOSTAT)

Kiwi farming has increased significantly in the countries mentioned, especially in Turkey. here, kiwi cultivation has shot up by more than 300% in the past ten years. That is considerably more than the 180% global acreage increase. Many Turkish growers in the Black Sea coastal area, in the north of the country, were looking for products with higher returns than kiwis initially offered. The rapidly expanding acreage has made this crop even less profitable. Most kiwis - some 90% - are destined for the domestic market. Turkish kiwi exports have, however, also increased in recent years. Kiwi farmers have benefited from the Turkish lira's low exchange rate. Worldwide, kiwi prices have risen. This is due to increased consumer demand, among other things. But the Turkish product's prices have remained fairly stable. Turkey, however, sends most of its kiwis to markets in Russia and the Middle East.

Jan Vermeiren, of Exofi Fresh Market in Brussels, Belgium, trades mostly in French kiwis. "I prefer these because of their quality," says Jan. "This is because when farmers harvest them, these kiwis always have high Brix levels." French kiwis come from the Dax region in the south of the country, where the climate lends itself to kiwi cultivation. The Spanish regions of Asturias and Galicia and northern Portugal have a similar climate. Kiwi acreage has increased there in recent years too.

"Five years ago, reasonable volumes of French kiwis went to Spain. But lately, the Spaniards have been planting more and more of their own kiwi vines. And everything you grow for your local market then no longer needs to be imported. Farmers in the northern Spanish region of Asturias began cultivating this fruit. However, in recent years, they've added more acreage in the Valencia region too."

It is not only that Spain, Portugal, and Turkey are growing more of their own kiwis. Jan also sees opportunities for kiwis in the Dutch and Belgian markets. But this is more due to the current developments in France. "The large French kiwi farms don't have much more room to grow. We are also increasingly seeing a switch from the green to the yellow kiwis. That is simply because the market is demanding these. But green kiwi prices are now sky high. I think this could lead to one of two things.”

“Either we'll soon only be selling yellow kiwis. More and more people are eating these, compared to green kiwis. That is because more and more of them are being

Nevertheless, the quantities remain low compared to the dominant markets

grown. Or other countries of origin like Turkey and Spain will get a good chance on the markets in Belgium and the Netherlands. There are a few small batches of Turkish kiwis in Germany, for example. That's mainly due to the large Turkish community in that country. Those people prefer products from their home country."

To save time, French and Italian yellow kiwi farmers have grafted the yellow varieties onto the rootstock of the green Hayward kiwi. These growers cultivate yellow kiwis under license. "As a result, you can harvest the yellow kiwis faster, but the green ones stop growing entirely after grafting,” explains Vermeiren. “If you plant yellow kiwi vines, it takes five years before you have fruit. That wasn't the case, and the European contracted farmers gambled on yellow kiwis with higher per kg yields. That's in both returns and yield per hectare.”

“But now, because of the grafting, there are tens of thousands of tons fewer Hayward green kiwis. That's why French green Hayward kiwis are currently so expensive. No-one gets an 80,000-ton yield of these kiwis anymore, not even in Italy. From December to April, Italy is a vital kiwi growing and packing destination for the European market," Jan concludes.

Dutch importers will have to wait and see what happens. "There will still be sufficient supply from the countries that are traditionally big on the market, like Italy and Greece. But nothing is impossible. South Africa has already tried to export kiwis to Europe. And we also have kiwis from countries that aren't normally strongly represented on the market," says an importer. An important side note - Spanish, Portuguese, and Turkish kiwi yields are still lagging well behind countries like Italy and Greece. In 2019, Turkey harvested 63,800 tons, Spain 24,500 tons, and Portugal 32,350 tons. In Greece, that was over 285,850 tons, and in Italy, it was 524,500 tons. (TD) 

info@exofi.be

Lorenza Ciccaroni and Herold Hage

Herold Hage (N&K): “We’d rather grown in depth than breadth” French Kinobé Groupe’s Dutch import office moves

Herold Hage and Lorenza Ciccaroni are not only life partners; they are business partners too. In 2018, after years of exotic produce trading, they started the N&K import office in the Netherlands for the French Kinobé Groupe. The group includes the French trading houses Nosibe S.A. and Kissao s.a.s. These firms focus on supplying French retailers. N&K has also increasingly started importing its own products to serve its own customer base. The young company recently moved into a new office. It is at the Freshgard cold storage company at the Barendrecht trading center in the Netherlands.

The couple is well-pleased with this new location. "We're right by the fruit, but we don't have to concern ourselves with logistics and can focus on our core business. We started with just the two of us. But our activities and team have gradually expanded quite a bit. That's why we made the strategic choice to focus purely on commerce, finance, and food safety. We outsource the other activities. Freshgard takes care of all logistics, and Europe Retail Packing does the packaging. We also get Fruitify experts to manage most of the quality assurance," says Herold.

DIRECT IMPORTS

He reflects on N&K's three-year growth with satisfaction. "It's been a success from day one. We literally started from scratch. But we have managed to realize a nice complementary fruit package for our French sister companies and own clients. That is thanks to a lot of effort and the right partners. The French import market is quite conservative. They buy most of their products from the larger importers. The Kinobé Groupe's direct imports, therefore, immediately met a need."

N&K’s top products are year-round mangos, avocados, limes, and ginger. These are supplemented with an overseas assortment of grapes, blueberries, citrus, and pomegranates. N&K also offers several smaller exotics like physalis, passion fruit, and papaya. From September through January, N&K imports pomelos from China, a relatively large product in the French market. Furthermore, Lorenza has remained faithful to her specialty - coconuts. By acquiring Joko Impex, those activities will

These companies belong to the Kinobé Groupe

Private label mangoes and avocados

eventually expand. "I kept in touch with Hans van der Kooij about the coconuts. His brother Daan stepped down from Joko's daily activities. When that happened, we asked if we could pick up the coconuts business along with the idea of taking over," she says.

Herold mentions connecting with the right growers as one of the bigger challenges. These farmers must meet supermarket specifications. "The French market's requirements for, for example, MRLs, used to usually lag somewhat behind other European countries like Germany and the Netherlands. But France is catching up fast," he says. N&K doesn't want to expand its range further. "We're looking to deepen rather than widen the assortment. The French market favors flavor; it is a good place for new varieties and ripe fruit. The Kinobe Groupe ripens its fruit in different locations where we can respond quickly and specifically to our clients' needs. France is a big country. If you must deliver from day A to B, your logistics process has to be in perfect order."

PANDEMIC BOOSTED SALES

The COVID-19 pandemic boosted N&K revenue. Herold is expecting a structural impact too. "Health has become enormously important. That is reflected in more people exercising, a good work-life balance, and, of course, in healthy nutrition. For example, smaller exotic varieties' sales increased. People like spoiling themselves now that they can eat out less or not at all. They, therefore, spend more money on good food. That also means your customer spread is vital, as the pandemic has proven."

NO SATURATION POINT

Farmers have planted more crops like blueberries and avocados in recent years. Despite that, the importer does not think the market is saturated yet. "The market has already grown, but these fruits still have enormous potential. Certain varieties like Hass avocados, fibreless mangos, and the new grape varieties are also boosting sales." The Kinobé Group supplies all major French retail chains. The increasing number of branches means consumption is also on the rise.

Herold does not consider the increasing demand for locally-grown products a threat to exotic imports. "After all, in Europe, mangos and avocados can only be grown for, at most, two months. If European consumers want more choice than apples and pears, we'll have to keep shipping in products from afar." In recent months, sea freight delays have been the order of the day. "But container scanning at the Port of Rotterdam causes the biggest delay. This has to be done. Drug dealers love using fruit imports to transport their goods. But I hope the Dutch government will prioritize solving the scanning delays."

Herold is very confident about the future, although he doesn't want to predict how large N&K should be in a few years. "We're gradually expanding and want to lay a stable foundation to ensure our work and products' quality. But we are ambitious. For instance, we want to increase our ripening capacity. And, in the Netherlands, we're also fully engaged in eco-friendly packaging." According to the importer, the new Dutch location is a great advantage in this respect. "There's quite a bit of mutual trade there, which is good. You can quickly anticipate shortages, which undoubtedly helps prevent waste," Herold concludes. (IH) 

h.hage@nk-kinobe-groupe.com

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Achiel and Jurgen De Witte together leave their mark on Group ADW and speak to each other every day

Jurgen de Witte, Group ADW: “There will always be a need for someone to guarantee service”

Group A. De Witte (ADW) is an international wholesale fruit, vegetable, and exotics organization. It has 28 branches across Belgium and the Netherlands. The company does imports, exports, wholesales, food service, logistics, and packaging. About half of the group’s turnover comes from wholesalers aimed at retail, restaurants, and industrial kitchens. The other half comes from supplying supermarkets. Group ADW deliberately doesn’t focus on only one component of the market.

Supermarkets, wholesalers, and retailers are all equally important. This strategy’s proving successful, once again, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales to restaurants and large kitchens fell away. But, these were made up elsewhere in the group. The group, therefore, achieved a healthy business revenue after all. Primeur spoke with CEO Jurgen de Witte about the pandemic, the wholesaler/supermarket position, growth, synergy, and new developments.

At this time last year, no one could’ve anticipated that a year later, we’d still be dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. But, that’s, unfortunately, the reality. How has your company been affected?

“Indeed, we couldn’t have foreseen that we’d still be in this situation. For us, it’s actually had a really positive [financial] impact. We had a good year. Socially, it’s difficult. A lot of us are working from home, so we don’t see co-workers anymore. Most customers continue to visit the market in the mornings. There’s still that face-to-face, true trading. So our market vendors can’t work from home.”

“You must be able to see and taste fruit and vegetables; that makes all the difference. There are quality and arrival reports, but that’s not the same as seeing and handling products. That’s crucial for trading. We buy with our senses, taste buds, eyes, and nose—there’s no way around that. Everyone discount supermarket and telephonic sales-related is working from home as are those in the marketing and IT departments. Unfortunately, the virus struck some of our

employees, resulting in hospitalizations. It’s taken a tremendous social and human toll.”

How has the pandemic affected the group as a whole?

“Last year was a great one. And current figures, to March 2021, shows very smooth fresh product sales too. Our subsidiaries that deliver to restaurants have had a terrible time. But our company has an advantage - we’re very widely spread. We don’t focus on one part of the market. We supply large supermarkets, wholesalers, and retailers too. Market vendor remains important to us, as do restaurants and industrial-sized kitchens. These are struggling now.”

“But that turnover loss is being absorbed by sales to retailers and discounters. So, our revenues have increased nicely. We produce meal boxes, which has absorbed some of restaurant and company kitchen sales losses. The meal box volumes have tripled, but that doesn’t entirely make up for all the losses. The group as a whole is compensating for that loss. We’re doing well. Many companies are having a tough time during this pandemic. We’ve been in that position too.”

The supermarket’s position seems stronger than ever, certainly during this crisis. Shorts chains are also becoming more of a thing. How do you, as a wholesaler, see the future?

“The future is guaranteed. There will always be specialists and public markets. Although fewer in number, the volume per store or market vendor is increasing. They’re flourishing. Focusing only on fruit and vegetables is no longer an option. Small convenience stores are becoming commonplace, like butchers that also sell fruit and vegetables. And greengrocers that sell baked goods or meat too. Or make fresh fruit salads or preservative-free dishes. Businesses that are inventive, retail-wise, can make a difference and have a very bright future.”

“The specialists won’t let supermarkets push them aside. Supermarkets wage prices war against each other, while specialty stores can still offer quality products. These may be more expensive, but they have added value. For example, mangos or strawberries from [the] Hoogstraten [cooperative in Belguim] have their price. Smaller stores that focus on these can distinguish themselves from supermarkets. Supermarkets have a price ceiling and don’t sell those more expensive products anymore. Convenience stores can reap those benefits.”

What do you think of how supermarkets are increasingly taking delivery into their own hands and setting up fruit and vegetable supply programs?

“This trend from a few years ago has been fading. Our strength lies in the service we offer. We’re available to our customers 24/7. We deliver to stores on Sundays. Stores that are open on Monday morning don’t want goods from Friday or Saturday. They want fresh products, so that’s what they get. We can offer that service, and then clients are inclined to pay that little bit more. Supermarkets increasingly want to source some products directly, but they still need a link that checks out and follows up on everything. Supermarkets don’t approach suppliers directly; they put someone in place to guarantee service. I think there’ll always be a link to ensure service and products’ quality and supply.

What’s important for Group ADW when sourcing products - doing it via an auction or rather in-house?

“Auctions are vital, and we do everything through them. We buy almost nothing directly from growers. We do have contacts with producers who pack the products under our own brand. But this always goes through the cooperative. We don’t want to compete with the auction houses; they’re our partners. That’s crucial for us to be able to guarantee continuity. Auctions offer a service that we need. It’s the same story as with supermarkets. They can also go directly to the growers, but they want year-round quality and service. So you prefer to have

Overview of branches

a link that takes care of everything. That’s what the cooperatives do for us. They make sure we get adequate supplies, in time, packaged correctly.”

Which Group ADW’s activities are increasing, and do you have expansion plans?

“Our import, as well as wholesale activities, continue to grow. We’re going to invest in one of our Belgian sites soon. We want to be able to offload and stock our products in optimal conditions, as sustainably as possible. We’re also planning acquisitions to strengthen our position in certain wholesale markets. These remain essential to our strategy to spread our activities as widely as possible.” “We don’t have any immediate plans to invest in sectors other than fruit and vegetables. We incidentally bought a dairy company. It fits nicely into our format of supplying the widest possible range of vegetables, dairy, beverages, and canned goods to restaurants. These customers then don’t have to go to different suppliers. They simply receive one delivery containing everything they need. COVID-19’s made this a little harder. But we look forward to restaurants and company kitchens reopening. Then we can get back to work, offering as extensive a range as possible.”

Are the different companies working within the group synergetic?

“We do our own imports, much of which is sold before it even reaches the shore. That always puts us a step ahead. If there are shortages, our wholesalers can rely on these imports. The wholesalers are sure they’ll be fully supplied and can deliver all their programs. When prices crash and production is under a lot of pressure, we have the advantage of having our own wholesalers. They send products to our branches, who then resell to restaurants or retailers. This allows for smooth sales, and we aren’t forced to sell at dumping prices. We don’t do that. Our wholesalers ensure we get everything sold easily so we can maintain price levels. We don’t have brokers either. What we sell goes directly to our customers.”

“We add the margin we need to survive, and all the rest goes to the clients and suppliers. That’s the only way we can work confidently and in the long term. The cooperation with our suppliers is critical to us. We want to unburden them and pay the right prices. We don’t want to squeeze suppliers. They have to live and pay their employees too. That’s our focus: satisfying suppliers, employees, and everyone else in the chain. We have long-term relationships with our suppliers, working with them for decades. I have no interest in starting a relationship that doesn’t last; that adds no value. If you work together for many years, everyone wins - suppliers, customers, and us.”

What trends and developments do you see in the fruit and vegetable markets? And how are you playing in on those?

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Is looking for a purchase/sales representative in the European import center for fruit and vegetables in Brussels

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