Temperate and sub-tropical species such as citrus fruit, grapes and pears are imported as well, but mainly in out of the European growing season. Countries in the southern hemisphere are able to supply when the countries in the northern hemisphere can not. This is also known as counter-season supply. For fruit products that can be stored, such as apples, the counter season is less evident. With the continual improvements in storage life and storage conditions of fruit products, the off-season is shortened.

EU countries have a high degree of internal supply for vegetable products. Only occasionally, for instance in cases of poor harvests or during the off-season period, products are imported from outside the EU. Some vegetables can be grown in controlled conditions such as greenhouses (glass or plastic), reducing the risk of a bad harvest and extending the supply period.

The possibilities of exports to the EU are small for products that are highly perishable or delicate such as lettuce and other leafy vegetables. When the harvest in the EU countries is too small and vegetables need to be imported, countries that are located close to the EU have the advantage of short transportation time and lower transport costs.

When analysing EUROSTAT trade statistics, we find that major vegetable products with a high degree of self-sufficiency are lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, cabbages, tomatoes and sweet pepper. Developing countries play an important role in the supply of peas and beans during the off-season. Other important off-season products supplied by developing countries are snow peas (mange-tout), sweet peppers and courgettes.

Source: ProVerde

“I’m delighted that we now have a fresh EU organic food logo,” said Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, who first proposed the competition to select the logo. “This exercise has raised the profile of organic food and we now have a logo which everyone will be able to identify with. It’s a nice elegant design and I look forward to buying products carrying this logo from July this year.” The winning logo was the result of a pan-European contest open to art and design students. The nearly 3,500 logo designs submitted were examined by an internationally renowned jury. The best three logos were uploaded on the competition website and subject to an online vote which ended on January 31, 2010. The ”Euro-leaf” design shows the EU stars in the shape of a leaf against a green background. It is a very straightforward sign containing two clear messages: Nature and Europe.

Source: European Commission

More and more EU entrepreneurs in this business are opting for offshore outsourcing, i.e. moving parts of the production process to developing countries (DCs). As they face increasing pressure to improve, many of them consider offshore outsourcing a strategic means of lowering production costs, increasing their own company’s capacity for products with a higher added-value outsourcing products with a lower added-value. While the number of fruit and vegetable growers in the EU has been declining for decades, their involvement in offshore fruit and vegetable growing is increasing.

Fruit outperforms vegetables
DCs play a very important role in EU fruit trade and a substantial, if smaller, role in the vegetable trade. In terms of volume, fruit imports from DCs also outperform vegetable imports. A major reason for this difference is the fact that the EU countries are highly dependent on imports, as some fruits are not grown in the EU, such as bananas or mangos, and others, such as citrus fruits, are only produced seasonally.

Opportunities and threats
The fresh fruit and vegetables market in the EU offers both opportunities and threats for exporters in DCs. The creation or adaptation of products that serve market segments and capitalise on trends in consumption, production and trade offers major opportunities. Obviously, tropical (super) fruits also offer good opportunities as they cannot be produced in the EU and therefore have to be imported. Likewise, products that can fill the EU supply gap during the off-season are likely to be successful. Organically grown products with a fair-trade label and developed in a sustainable manner will also readily find their way onto EU markets.

Source: CBI

CBI just published an interesting video about the mango value chain illustrating their efforts to assist the Mali sector to step up to European markets standards. The video can be viewed at: mango value chain video

Since 2002, EU imports of mangos have increased by more than 50%. The Netherlands and France are the leading EU importers. The Netherlands is also an important re-distributor of mangos to the rest of the EU. In terms of consumption markets, the UK and France are very important for mango producers, thanks to their many ethnic minorities who are facilitating market penetration. Other interesting EU markets for mangos are countries historically related to mango-producing countries, like Spain and Portugal. In all of these markets, organic and fair-trade fruits are wanted.

Although originally from southern Asia, the mango today is the second most important fruit – after the banana – in the entire tropical world. Mangoes are not cultivated in the EU, but an extensive trade network does exist within the EU, which is especially interesting for suppliers from developing countries. Unlike bananas or pineapples, fresh mangoes can be supplied by DC producers the year round, as production is spread across the tropics.

Buyer demands regarding food safety are getting stricter all the time. Under pressure of campaigns by Greenpeace, supermarkets in Germany, for instance, are toughening restrictions on so-called Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs), sometimes even going beyond official EU legislation. Other European countries are expected to follow. In addition to these market requirements, individual supermarkets often impose their own standards, such as individual labels or certificates. Although complying with the demands of the buyers does not mean better prices, your exporters should stick to regulations like Globalgap or the BRC protocol. If they don´t, they may be out of business.

Another trend is the changing role of EU importers who, on behalf of their clients, have turned into full service providers required to guarantee year-round supplies and product availability. As a consequence, these importers are increasingly on the look-out for professional, large suppliers or suppliers groups. Small and single means no exports. Also, demands in the area of handling, forward loading, shipment speed and quality control during shipments are rising. Demands like these call for a united approach. As a BSO, you may have to help your exporters form joint grower groups. Promoting teamwork in the sector is one priority you can´t afford to miss. Only by joining arms can BSOs and exporters together face the market.

A third trend relates to changes in global trade patterns for fruits and vegetables. Fast growing markets in Asia, Russia and the Middle East are importing more and more. As a result, the EU may lose some of its importance, as DC exporters become less dependent on it for exports. This may give them more negotiation power with EU buyers.

Source: CBI

Quality standards
The EU market is not easy to please. You’d think an orange is an orange, but it’s not. In terms of quality standards, an orange may be an orange ‘extra’ class (superior quality), class I, or class II, depending on shape, external appearance, development and colouring. The main requirements established by the EU legislation with regard to quality standards for fresh fruit and vegetables, however, relate to the quality in terms of health and safety, as well as accurate labelling. These standards prescribe that the fruits and vegetables covered may not be rotting or deteriorating, that they must be clean (free of ‘foreign matters’, which could be anything from a piece of glass to insects), free from pests or damage caused by pests, free of abnormal external moisture and free of any foreign smell and/or taste. As of July 2009, the scope of the EU quality standards will be downsized to ten fruits and vegetables, as compared to the present 36 – good news if you find the standards hard to keep up with! Unless, of course, your product is among the ones that will still be subject to the quality standards: citrus, tomatoes, apples, table grapes, sweet peppers, peaches and nectarines, pear, lettuces, kiwis and strawberries.

Maximum Residue Levels
The presence of pesticide residues in consumer fruit and vegetables has been restricted by so-called Maximum Residue Levels, or MRLs. Meeting the limit values set in EU legislation may not always be enough, however, as some supermarkets have set their own, stricter MRLs. This development was triggered by Greenpeace Germany report published in 2007, in which the NGO reported on MRLs that were harmful to health and called on both retailers and legislators to do something about the present situation. German supermarkets were the first ones to take action, but in the meantime their colleagues in Austria, Sweden, the UK, The Netherlands and Denmark have followed suit.

Contaminants
Contaminants, such as heavy metals, nitrates and mycotoxins in fruit and vegetables, can be harmful to human health and have therefore been restricted. Unlike MRLs, contaminants are not a result of what’s added to the crops on purpose, but stem from heavy metals found in the soil where they’re grown, for instance. The heavy metals lead and cadmium are restricted in all fruit and vegetables marketed in the EU. Other contaminants are restricted for certain fruit and vegetables (e.g. nitrates in spinache and lettuce and aflatoxins in maize).

Novel food
Novel foods are foods not marketed in the EU before 15 May 1997 (when the Novel Food Regulation entered into force) and as such also include ‘exotic’ foods which though quite possibly part of traditional cuisine elsewhere in the world are not known in the EU. All novel foods put up for entry into the EU after the ’97 date are subject to the safety assessment procedures established in the Novel Food Regulation. In many cases, this poses a true trade barrier. The good news, however, is that food known in one of the EU Member States before 15 May 1997 is not counted as novel throughout the EU and thus gains market access to the whole EU.
Lucuma, the Andean fruit was suspected of being novel until France stepped in and declared it was familiar with lucuma before ’97. Lucuma was officially cleared by the EU and may therefore be imported throughout the EU.

Organic
The market for organically produced fruit and vegetables continues to grow, with many supermarkets offering organic alternatives next to conventional ones. Consumers associate organic with healthier products. Environmental concerns may also motivate them in purchasing organic food. Certification is a must for anyone marketing a product as organic in the EU, where minimum requirements have been established in EU legislation. Many certification schemes, like that of the Rainforest Alliance, cover social aspects as well as environmental ones, or even focus mainly on social issues, such as Fair Trade. Despite its growth, this market remains a niche.

GLOBALGAP
GLOBALGAP, previously EurepGAP, is a management system for Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) in which hygiene measures and procedures are key. Many European retailers work with this system as a means of guaranteeing food safety. It includes a set of requirements according to which producers must work, covering major musts, minor musts and recommendations. Major musts include hygiene risk analyses and documented hygiene procedures for harvesting. Minor musts cover things like the storage of packaging material.

Source: CBI News (July 4, 2009)

The final reports provide conclusions and recommendations with respect to the feasibility of the envisaged Export Coaching Programme, including possible bottlenecks and suggestions with respect to the market entry strategy.

The objective of the evaluations is to review the activities that took place, and to assess the effectiveness of the EDP as a trade promotion tool. Recommendations are provided to improve effectiveness and/or efficiency. Assessment of effectiveness involved measuring the quantitative results of the programme.

Feasibilities and evaluations of the following export programmes have been conducted by ProVerde:

• Fresh Fruit and Vegetables (July 2007 & March 2008)
• Plants and Young Plant Material (January 2007)
• Timber (June 2007)
• Personal Protective Equipment (December 2005)
• Young Pot Plant Material (May 2005)
• Medical Devices (October 2004)
• Engineering Products (June 2004)
• Machine Parts (June 2004)
• Stationary Items (January 2004)
• Mobile Engined Equipment (February 2003)
• Handicrafts (December 2002)