TFNet News Compilation (Page 186)

by Nichola Watson, Fresh Plaza   The citrus market in the UK is surprisingly buoyant at the moment, according to Maja Jerkovic from Jacana Produce. “Egyptian Navels are finished and the Valencias are coming in. Quality is very good this year, a big difference to last year when there were aContinue Reading

  Growers in Carnarvon, West Australia, have been making a steady recovery after a severe cyclone, dubbed Cyclone Olwyn, destroyed their plantations back in March 2015. Local bananas will again be available on supermarket shelves in six weeks’ time.   Twelve months on, Agriculture and Food Minister Ken Baston visitedContinue Reading

  Cameroon’s banana association (ASSOBACAM) reported that in comparison with January 2015, when 26,366 tons of bananas were exported, January 2016 recorded a drop in dessert banana exports by 341 tons.   The downward trend is expected to continue throughout 2016, according to the Cameroonian Development Corporation (CDC); one ofContinue Reading

  Around 1950, Garðyrkjuskóli ríkisins in Iceland planted their first banana plants as an experiment. Only 177 miles from the Arctic Circle, the plantation at the Icelandic National Gardening School, is the biggest banana plantation in Northern Europe; fed by an abundance of volcanic hot springs, the heat from them isContinue Reading

  Following an outbreak of the Mediterranean fruit fly in Adelaide, New Zealand is tightening biosecurity measures for passengers arriving from Australia.   Detector dogs may be used to greet passengers as they step off incoming Australian flights to provide greater scrutiny of hand luggage, which is the most likelyContinue Reading

by Tad Thompson, The Produce News   By mid-March, the Mexican mango season will be picking up for Higueral Produce, Inc., which is based in Rio Rico, AZ.   Higueral received the season’s first shipment on Feb. 19. Edgar Duarte, a partner in the firm, said the mangos “look really nice,” notingContinue Reading

by Jennifer Harrison, Fresh Plaza   A low papaya supply, coupled with a steady demand for the tropical fruit is creating a tightening of papayas prices for U.S. markets.   “Papayas are coming from Mexico, Guatemala and Belize, and due to weather and growing conditions in these areas, we have shortContinue Reading

  Tropical Millenium, based in Malaga, is a company which has been dedicated to subtropical products since 2002, working mainly with avocado and mango imported from several countries.   For their new warehouse, they wanted a modern and innovative system that would allow the detection of ripe fruit ready forContinue Reading

  Over the next two years, if uncontrolled, a disease known as Phytophthora could potentially wipe out avocado and macadamia trees in Murang’a and neighbouring counties in Kenya.   Olivado EPZ Ltd field officer Michael Gitahi, said that after realising the disease had invaded tree nurseries, the company decided toContinue Reading

by Joel Pitarch Diago, Fresh Plaza   According to José Enrique Sanz, manager of IGP Cítricos Valencianos, the current Valencian citrus season could be described as “commercially acceptable” because, despite a 30% drop in the Spanish production volume, prices have been somewhat better. However, expectations were much higher.   “Demand hasContinue Reading

by Kasper Friis, Atlas Obscura   Employees at Garðyrkjuskóli ríkisins take a certain pride in telling their guests that they work at the biggest banana plantation in Northern Europe.   Of course, there really isn’t much competition.   Bananas normally grow in much warmer climates. But the plantation at the Icelandic National Gardening School,Continue Reading