Kiwi Market Digest w41

Weekly Updates on the B2B Kiwi Market

Our Visit to the Land of Kiwi

Our company's CEO, Ilias Sousis, and Purchasing Director, Willem van Rooij, visited the main kiwi-producing area of Greece. The fields of Pieria, in the foothills of Mount Olympus and under the supervising gaze of its formidable peaks, give forth the highest quality of kiwifruit.

During our recent visit, we were able to expand our supplier network by connecting with new farmers and packaging houses. This will provide our customers with more options to choose from and enable them to find the product that best suits their needs and budget. Additionally, we gained valuable insights through discussions with both our existing and new partners.

The major kiwifruit producers in Greece are anticipating a decrease in production volumes, particularly after the recent floods in the Thessaly region. Nevertheless, they predict that the fruit will be larger in size and of better quality than in previous years.

Prospects of Kiwi Trade between India and Iran

It is expected that India will lift the embargo it had imposed on Iran in the past decades, which will lead to an abundance of cheaper kiwifruit in the Indian market. This will result in a decrease in demand for kiwifruit from other origins. However, Greek producers are still hopeful as their brand has been established worldwide, and their produce is expected to be absorbed elsewhere.                                                             

All in all, this development makes for good news for B2B buyers of kiwifruit around the world, at least price-wise, as the higher supply is projected to create downward pressures in kiwifruit prices.

Mixed Price Movements

The most recent data officially published by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture of Germany for calendar week 39, testify to the movements projected by our analysts and agents on the field. Kiwifruit supply continues to be scarce, but, as the kiwi harvesting period approaches in the main producing areas of Europe, its availability has been slightly increasing. 

This explains the mean drop of 3.65% in the wholesale prices of Greek and Italian kiwifruit of Cal. 30/33 in the main German wholesale markets, with a mean absolute price of 3.48€/Kg.

As for medium-to-bigger size calibers, Greek Cal. 25/27 kiwi mean prices dropped by about 10% on average, with a mean price of 2.70€/Kg, significantly lower than the price of 3.60€/Kg of Italian produce. 

In France, and specifically in the Rungis and Marseille markets, our agents have reported the same price movements.

Market Powers Behind Price Movements

It has been reported by market operators that some farmers are hurrying to get their products to market, which seems to be the primary reason behind the fluctuations in the market. Unripe produce is flooding the market, closing the supply gap with its dual effect, increasing supply, and temporarily lowering demand. That is especially true for lower-caliber fruit, which is more prone to be in non-marketable condition at this time.

Taking the case of Greek produce into account, many farmers illegally export their kiwifruit before it reaches the minimum legal level of 6.5 BRIX, which typically occurs around October 15 for the Hayward variety. The implications of this practice, summed up in lower product quality and worse consumer sentiment against Greek produce, have already started to come to life; kiwifruit consumption in Italy, a country where it has been established in the consumers' habits for many years, has seen a steep drop in the last weeks due to this.

Wikifarmer's Edge

To facilitate the interest of both farmers and B2B buyers of fresh produce, Wikifarmer negotiates with a worldwide network of suppliers to secure a steady supply of all the main kiwifruit varieties at reasonable prices. Our team can help you with price negotiation, credit terms, and logistics and transportation arrangements. We also implement strict Quality Assurance procedures, making sure that producers provide us with all certificates that prove their claims about their products, and that all relevant analyses take place. 

This way, producers can market their products at the optimal time, preventing damage to their brand and retaining customers' interest in their product, and B2B buyers can source the product that best matches their quality needs and budget.