A Gloucestershire farmer says he plans to stop growing labor-intensive crops as there is too much uncertainty over whether he can find seasonal workers in the future. Martin Haines, who runs WR Haines, needs 80 people to pick his crops. However, he is unsure if he will be able to hire them
read more

In the last few days and weeks, prices for fruits and vegetables in Bulgaria have gone up quickly. Heavy rains in the country have practically destroyed the harvest of crops. It has become clear that vegetable growers and farmers cultivating fruits in the open air have suffered the most, and
read more

The price of avocado 034 from the Central Highlands, Vietnam's largest avocado-growing area, has dropped 20% year on year thanks to oversupply and low demand during tough economic times. The unique varietal is currently selling for VND15,000-30,000 (US$0.64-1.27) per kilogram at markets and on
read more

Greenhouse farm “Bostani” (translated as “Vegetable Garden”) will not be able to export for several more years. Beka Barjadze, the founder of the organic farm, talks about the reasons why “Bostani” does not plan to export for 4-5 years. read more

Export estimates for various citrus categories have been amended downwards: navels by 500,000 15kg cartons to reach an estimate of 24.8 million 15kg cartons; grapefruit by 100,000 cartons to 14.3 million cartons, over two million fewer than last year. read more

As the production season develops, more American Washington cherries have arrived, including the "Rainier" yellow cherry; a small number of Canadian cherries are already on the market. In addition, South African oranges entered the market, while Vietnamese dragon fruits are relatively less. read more

In June, the CIV-Consorzio Italiano Vivaisti proceeded with its continuous updating and sharing of information with other European operators by participating in events such as the "Delphy ISFC Field Day" in the Netherlands and the Congress of Red Fruits in Spain, with the aim of growing and
read more

Sri Lanka: Green supermarket opens in Nugegoda read more

UK officials are weighing options to blunt the cost of post-Brexit border checks on European food imports due to start in January. In particular, PM Sunak’s government has in recent weeks been studying the potential impact of the measures, which include physical examinations and extra
read more

The Global Coalition of Fresh Produce published the results of its survey conducted in the spring of 2023 to highlight the increasing costs of fruits and vegetable production around the world and their impacts on the whole produce industry and end consumers. read more

Sources forecast that Ukraine’s walnut production will stand at 106,500 tons for marketing year (MY) 2023/24,similar to MY2022/23. Production fell in 2022 because some production areas are currently in occupied territory at the time of the report writing. Exports are slow, plagued by quality
read more

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada (ILWU Canada) issued a 72-hour strike notice to the British Colombia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) with regards to the expired collective agreement. The BCMEA received a formal, written strike notice on 28 June and ILWU Canada
read more

The heavy rainfall in Spain meant, among other things, that the water content of the fruit was so high that it arrived in Germany partly ripe to overripe and rotted more quickly, as Philipp Lang, managing director of Früchte Lang from Hengersberg, tells us. "This disadvantage is unusual at the
read more

This year, the sector will celebrate 5 years as the official supplier and official banana of the Tour de France. After arriving at the world's biggest cycling race in 2018 as sponsor of the team, the French banana has been the official banana of the Tour de France since 2019, spreading its
read more

This month FreshPlaza will focus on Automation. read more

The British blueberry season kicked off a week later than usual this year; it started on 9th June and is set to run until 30th September. Experts predict that the crop will be particularly sweet this year, as warm sunny weather in June boosts the sugar content. read more

The situation of the Spanish melon and watermelon season has changed drastically from May to June and July, going from a clear oversupply in the markets and the collapse of prices to a shortage and a significant rise in prices. read more

Europatat has welcomed the Polish Seed Trade Association (PIN), the only chamber of commerce in the seed industry in Poland. The origins of the formation date back to the 90s of the twentieth century, and currently there are 95 national and foreign affiliates, having the majority share of the
read more

South African retailer Pick n Pay has started selling apples of all varieties that sustained surface damage during hail storms over the Ceres area in November and again over the Langkloof in February – apples that otherwise might have had to be discarded. read more

"The year 2023 is definitely a special one for watermelons. The weather has been crucial. First, there was a mild winter, then there was rain in February that somewhat complicated the planting of seedlings. In addition, there were hailstorms in the Calabrian province of Crotone that made it
read more