In the face of escalating challenges and mounting financial pressures within the agricultural sector, efficiency has never been more critical for growers. As inflation continues to push production costs higher, the prices received for produce are not keeping pace, squeezing profit margins. It is
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“You get to know blueberry trends but this year I had to throw my blueberry marketing manual, with all the trends and the statistics, out the door,” says Tiaan Rossouw, managing director of Rainbow Superfood, a berry exporter. read more

In the 2023 export season Southern African citrus growers packed 165.1 million (15kg) cartons for delivery to global markets. While this is an increase of approximately 800 000 from the packed figures of last year, it is still 500,000 cartons lower than the forecast at the start of the season
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Soil fatigue is a common problem in agriculture, especially when the same vegetable species is cultivated repeatedly on the same land. This leads to various agronomic problems, including reduced root development, lower vigor and productivity and increased sensitivity to diseases and
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Last month, APM Terminals Pecém, Brazil, handled 55,000 TEUs, the highest volume ever recorded in the terminal’s history. The terminal also saw an impressive 11% growth in container moves year to date, versus the same period in 2022, mainly driven by a 23% growth in the export of produce from
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Taking into account the auctions it has in the province of Almeria and the marketing activity itself, La Unión provides commercial support to about 3,000 producers each season, handling an average of about 350 million kilos of fruit and vegetables annually. read more

Harrison Mullins, a three-year-old from Rossendale, Lancashire, is an avid fan of broccoli, not for eating but as a companion. He sleeps with a real broccoli every night, replacing the usual teddy bear, and refuses to eat it, considering it his 'best friend'. His obsession includes a broccoli
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US cranberries are harvested in autumn, just in time for the holiday season. The 2023 US cranberry crop is forecast to be 7.62 million barrels, down 5.4 percent from the previous year, but equal to the 2020–22 average. The top-producing state, Wisconsin, typically harvests around 60 percent of
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The 2022 French campaign was exceptional, with an abundant harvest of almost 50,000 tons, compared with an average of 40,000 tons (20,000 tons in the Périgord and 20,000 tons in the Grenoble region). This surplus was “difficult to sell on the saturated global market, which led to a drop in
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The European Commission has adopted the 2024 work program for the promotion of agri-food products, which will have a budget of 185.9 million euro that will mainly be used for co-finance promotion programs proposed by entities in the different Member States, as well as the communication campaigns
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As Chile’s cherry harvest ramps up, producers and packers are gaining the benefits of a new AI solution, Spectre for Cherries S.A. Built specifically for the South American cherry industry, the technology is delivering critical cherry size and color data, earlier than ever before. read more

Transitioning to a more sustainable world hinges significantly on consumers making informed choices based on credible green claims. However, the prevalence of greenwashing, where products falsely project environmental responsibility without substantiated evidence, creates a bewildering maze of
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The challenges for Peru’s mango producers and exports are starting to mount with volumes to China and the rest of Asia as well as other markets much lower. They also have to compete with Brazil’s lower mango prices. “For this new 2023-2024 season we plan to do 1,000 pallets. But, this year
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EastFruit analysts draw attention to an unexpected fact – currently the world leader in the growth rate of blueberry exports is a country that is better known for its record breaking hyperinflation rates and poverty. However, this country was once very rich and had a highly developed
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According to Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy, peat is currently being imported into Ireland for the mushroom sector, while the harvesting of peat is not permitted here. He called the governmental inaction to resolve the peat supply issues ‘scandalous’. Carthy is a TD for Cavan-Monaghan. He
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WA Farm Direct and N&A Group will start the 2023 season of Ondine series of flat peach and flat nectarine varieties in the Australian market this November. read more

In Ireland, domestic consumption and retail sales remain buoyant. Some dryer weather this week may open a window for some harvesting, however, conditions are still very challenging. Yields are reported to be below average and wastage due to cracks is higher than average. Market prices are
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The current state of this year’s potato harvest in Ireland and the UK has seen significant challenges. A primary concern is the slow progress due to persistent poor weather conditions, with an estimated 20-30% of the national main crop yet to be harvested. Fields in southern and eastern UK are
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Vegetable prices are expected to experience a slight increase leading up to the winter period, but First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food, Taras Vysotskyi, assures that there won't be any record price jumps in the fall or winter. Vysotskyi believes that the ample production volumes of
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The UK has seen exceptionally wet weather in last couple of months, torrential downpours combined at times with high winds. Some areas of the country saw major flooding and infrastructure damage. The storms came as growers were trying to get this year’s potato harvest in. read more