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The Greek pears have nearly been totally harvested for the season, says Paris Karastergios, import-export coordinator for Greek produce exporter Kastargiou P. Bros S.A.: “We’ve got completed harvesting our pears with about 90% picked, with only some batches of smaller fruits remaining. In the meanwhile, the selecting continues with the varieties which are going for use principally for canning functions, Highland, Sissy and Williams pears. High quality clever, this season the Greek climate was beneficial for pears. There have been no main damages by frosts throughout blossom, which was our main challenge final 12 months. Furthermore, there was no rainfall in the course of the selecting interval, which lasted from 20/07 to 22/08, and the temperature didn’t exceed 35 levels Celsius, thus we didn’t have any sunburned pears both. This all signifies that the manufacturing was larger than final 12 months’s marketing campaign by roughly 15-20% in all three of our major varieties.”
“Our major varieties for export are Coscia, often known as Ercolini, and Santa Maria. We additionally provide Blanquilla pears, that are possibly not as recognized within the northern a part of Europe. Nevertheless, it’s the bestselling pear within the home market, and it’s extremely appreciated in Israel as nicely. When it comes to volumes, we work extra with Santa Maria pears, after which Blanquilla. Coscia is a spread that’s not cultivated as a lot in comparison with earlier years, as a result of most growers change it with Santa Maria,” Karastergios explains.
“Completely different varieties do higher in several locations; with Santa Maria to be appreciated each in Europe and Center East. We export all of our varieties to Israel and Jordan, whereas Santa Maria can be exported to the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia. Coscia is very appreciated in Saudi Arabia and within the UAE, the place we began exporting to this season.”
As with a whole lot of different European international locations, Greece can be coping with a scarcity in labor. It has resulted in larger prices for the harvest, however Kastargiou received all of it executed in the long run: “The key problem for our growers up so far was to seek out employees for the harvesting course of. In each area in Europe, there’s a vital lack of personnel for choosing. That is no completely different for Greece, as many of the employees that have been selecting fruits final 12 months, didn’t come to Greece in any respect, or most popular different jobs, principally into tourism. This challenge led to delays in selecting, and better prices which in flip led to larger costs as nicely. Ultimately, the growers needed to discover employees from a few of the refugee hospitality centres which are situated close to to our manufacturing area, and the selecting has come to an finish.”
Kastargiou would love to see their pears attain new locations this season. “We’re already attempting to enter the market of Oman with Santa Maria and Egypt with Coscia pears, whereas we’re strengthening {our relationships} with our loyal shoppers in Israel. One other fascinating marketplace for Santa Maria is Germany, the place Santa Maria pears are consumed early autumn, earlier than they swap to Convention pears. The season shall be in full swing throughout September-October, and it’ll final till February for Santa Maria and late Could for Blanquilla, so we have now time to debate with potential shoppers the potential of working collectively.” Karastergios concludes.
“Lastly, we’re engaged on increasing our merchandise calendar with a pair extra varieties, like Williams Bon Chretien, which is a pear with lengthy shelf life and resistance to longer transit instances, so as to attain Far East locations.”
For extra info:
Paris Karastergios
Karastergiou P. Bros S.A.
Tel: +30 24610 26940
Mob: +30 693 2469117
E mail: paris.karastergios@karastergioubros.gr
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