Agriculture is big business in Papua New Guinea. It provides 22% of the nation’s GDP and accounts for 26% of its exports. Farming supports around 85% of the rural population. Cocoa and coffee are the main cash crops and employ half of the workforce. read more

WAPA, the World Apple and Pear Association, released the apple and pear stock figures for 1 February 2023. The figures show that in Europe apple stocks decreased by -6.4% compared to 2022 to reach 3 377 583 T, while pear stocks also increased slightly by 0.6% to reach 410 711 T. In the USA,
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Empty shelves in UK supermarkets, but British cucumbers are for sale in Singapore. It has been another eventful week for the British fresh produce industry. read more

Carrefour has announced the opening of the first two Potager City stores in Paris “to meet the essential needs of city dwellers with an offer of quality fresh produce at the right price. This new local format complements the e-commerce offer of fruit and vegetable basket delivery already
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Against the backdrop of empty supermarket shelves, the NFU launched a strategy to boost UK horticulture. If backed by the government, this could be the solution to minimize future supply chain disruption. read more

The regional government of Murcia, through the Murcian Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Research and Development (IMIDA), is developing a project to improve the quality of Murcia's lettuce varieties, which is already bearing fruit. read more

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Turkey has decided to limit the exports of tomatoes until April 14, 2023. The ministry said in a statement that "due to the recent abnormal rise in the price of tomatoes in Turkey and the terrible consequences of the earthquake, which directly affected
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This week, nine major UK retailers have made a public commitment to close the living wage gap in their banana supply chains. Aldi, Asda, Co-op, Lidl GB, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Waitrose will work together, supported by the Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH),
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Where is the food packaging market headed? Is getting rid of all plastic packaging really the way to go? Is paper the right remedy? According to Marta Paprocka, PR and Marketing Manager for Polish packaging company Silbo, the packaging landscape has been headed in that direction for the past few
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All Belgian Metros have found new owner read more

Kuehne+Nagel will serve its customers in Africa with an even stronger service: The Group today announced that Alexandre Muratore has been appointed Managing Director of the newly established West Africa Cluster comprising Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Sierra
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It does not happen everyday to see apricot trees in bloom covered in snow on the first of March. However, this is exactly what happened on the hills in the Ravenna and Bologna provinces. read more

Farmers and traders from the agriculture rich area of Kinangop in Nyandarua County are warning of a looming shortage of fresh produce in major towns due to the harsh weather conditions. read more

The global pear market seems to be on a stable note, with increasing demand and good prices, especially for smaller sizes. The Belgian pear market is doing well, with a surge of 30% in prices in the last month, and a high demand for smaller sizes. Meanwhile, Germany is experiencing an increase
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The cabinet has joined President Cyril Ramaphosa in his call to the former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter to report allegations of corruption at Eskom to the police. “Our crime fighting institutions stand ready to arrest and prosecute those who break the law. We call on anyone with information
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The cold weather is back in Andalusia, so more attention is being paid to the wholesale prices of fruit and vegetables in the province of Almeria, which, in their own way, immediately reflect the fluctuations in the supply. read more

The use of individual protective covers (IPCs) to safeguard young citrus trees from HLB has become a common practice in Florida groves in recent years. Fernando Alferez, an assistant professor of citrus horticulture with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences
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Although the processing of the oranges from the 2022/23 crop is beginning to slow down in Brazil, it is still higher than the usual for this time of the year. In February, five plants – of the large-sized processors – were operating, the same as that last year but much more than that in 2020
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In the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle, New Zealand horti industry players would like permanent changes to the season worker scheme being urgently reviewed. As it stands, Immigration Minister Michael Wood is taking advice on whether flexibility can be built into the seasonal worker scheme to
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After reading a story about how students in Kansas petitioned their legislators to name the sandhill plum the official state fruit of the Sunflower State, students at the elementary school in Madison asked their teacher what Mississippi’s state fruit was. Upon finding out that the state, in
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