• 13 Mar
    The SGF/IFU Asia Road Show

    The SGF/IFU Asia Road Show

    SGF AND IFU (INTERNATIONAL FRUIT AND VEGETABLE JUICE ASSOCIATION)

    The SGF/IFU Asia Road Show

    The objective of the ASIA Road Show is to connect with Asian fruit juice producers, to explain the control activities of SGF, the international organization based in Germany responsible for raw material control that aims to assure the safety, quality, authenticity and sustainability of juices. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss issues related to the juice industry with the relevant speakers.

    The IFU, as the Global Juice Association, will present its activities for the juice industry. The IFU as the only official juice NGO at Codex Alimentarius will explain the positions adopted in response to the development of international Codex standards. IFU will describe the current catalogue of analytical methods, method developments and the benefits of IFU methods for international trade as they are recognised in the Codex standard.

    The seminars are intended for quality, R&D and production managers, as well as for purchasing and sales managers of juice processing and bottling industries, plus laboratories, state control inspectors and research and development institutions.

    The remaining seminars for 2017 take place in: Xi´an (China) on May 12th, in Bangkok (Thailand) on June 1st, in Tokyo (Japan) on September 20th and in Dubai (UAE) on October 30th. For more information go to https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sgf-ifu-asia-roadshow-india-tickets-30070585932?aff=erelpanelorg. Email: events@sgf.org, Tel: +49 6136 9228 0

    By Caroline Calder News
  • 13 Mar
    The market for organic fruit juices in the Nordic region is on fire	 	 	 

    The market for organic fruit juices in the Nordic region is on fire      

    Fruit Juice Focus talks with Jyri Kähönen CEO of Raikastamo (aka Freshery Drinks) about their journey from small beginnings to being one of Finland’s leading organic fruit juice producers

    The market for organic fruit juices in the Nordic region is on fire. There is huge awareness and demand at present and growth shows no signs of slowing down. In Sweden the organic market grew by 25% in 2015 and in Finland growth levels were at 12% whereas the conventional groceries market in Finland managed only 0.3% growth in the same period according to the Finnish Organic Food Association.

    Raikastamo are one of Finland’s leading organic fruit juice producers and their products can now be spotted in the best cafes and shops across Finland and neighbouring Nordic countries.

    Fruit Juice Focus (FJF): Can you tell us a little bit about your company and why you entered the organic fruit juice market?

    Jyri Kähönen (JK): Raikastamo got started from very small beginnings – we were six friends who started pressing apple juice from an apple orchard in Southern Finland. We were lucky to win the prize for the Best Finnish Organic Product in our first year of operation. That’s when things got rolling.

    At the moment we are growing fast – now we are operating in three categories in premium organic bottled juice drinks for HoReCa, children’s organic juice drinks and organic carbonated sodas. During 2017 we will launch a range of 1 litre organic juice drinks for the retail market and a new craft soda brand. We have achieved a steady foothold in the Finnish retail market and are in the process of expanding to other Nordic markets. In the international market we operate under brand name Freshery.

    The organic market provided us a point of entry to the market as a whole. There was still space for a small organic player such as ourselves between the big established players like Valio, Refresco Finland and Eckes-Granini. Also the Minimum Order Quantities (MOQs) for organic ingredients are usually much smaller than for conventional products. That enabled us to source from the global market in the first place – the minimum quantities for conventional products would have been overwhelming for us in the beginning.

    FJF: How do you as a company and your products achieve organic status? Is there a certification process?

    JK: The organic certification process is strict. It is supervised by the national and EU supervision authorities. In Finland the certification is granted by The Finnish Food Safety Authority and the licence is audited annually. The Finnish Customs run random laboratory tests on a regular basis to check for traces of pesticides and other forbidden ingredients from the raw materials we use and the finished products we sell.

    FJF: How and where do you source your organic raw materials, or do you grow them yourselves? Can supply keep up with demand?

    JK: The Finnish domestic supply does not satisfy our need. We are also operating with citrus and other more exotic fruits for which there is no supply from the local market. We source our supply from the global market via agents and also directly from the supplier of the raw materials.

    The annual alternation of the crop levels in organic farming is much more volatile than in conventional farming because of the smaller scale and because no pesticides or fertilizers are allowed which means that we have to be constantly reviewing our sources of supply. So far we have been able to satisfy our needs but as we are expanding we might face challenges in the future on that side as well.

    FJF: What challenges has your company faced and how have you been able to overcome them?

    JK: The awareness for organic products in the Nordic market is on a good level. Luckily the days when it was necessary to educate or convince the consumers are over. Now we are able to focus on developing our brand and sales in a far more receptive market.

    The big question with the retailers is always the price point. The organic ingredients and raw materials bear a higher price in comparison with conventional ingredients and raw materials and that, naturally, has an effect on the consumer price point as well. The only way to justify the higher price point is to focus on quality and the strong brand.

    From the beginning we have considered marketing as our core competence. In our team we have a television commercial director and an industrial designer, and one of the founding partners was a director for consumer experience in a major IT company. Therefore we had a strong orientation on marketing and brand building from the onset. I believe that is what differentiated us from the other small, production-orientated players.

    FJF: How do you see the organic market developing, and you as a company within the organic space?

    JK: As a small, growing company we plan to work market by market. At the moment we are focusing on the Nordic market. There is still plenty of work and room for development for us here. Having said that, we are always open to discussion if the right distributor should walk in from some other territory.

    Image credits: Antti-Jussi Rantala

    By Caroline Calder Features
  • 13 Mar
    Demand for mango and passion fruit juice concentrates

    Demand for mango and passion fruit juice concentrates

    Fruit Juice Focus analyses the past five years of imports of mango and passion fruit juice concentrates into key consumer countries including the Netherlands, Germany, France, the UK and the US.

    Mango

    Aseptic mango puree concentrate 28/30 brix imports have shown steady growth in the three countries analysed below with all showing a surge in demand between 2011 and 2014. While figures indicate a levelling off in 2015 and 2016, the increased popularity of mango juice over the last few years can’t be ignored. Tropical blends on the supermarket shelves are commanding more space as consumers look to expand tastes.

    Imports into the Netherlands, for example, more than doubled in 2012 against 2011 with an even greater jump in 2013 up to 21,561 tonnes against the 2012 figure of 9,999 tonnes.

    Imports into the US have increased steadily from 2011 through to 2015 with 2016 showing a slight drop in demand of around 3%. Most of these supplies would have been delivered from South America – particularly Colombia.

    FJF_Mar_17_TradeData

     

    Passion fruit

    Imports of passion fruit juice concentrate (50 brix) show steady growth in the UK and France for the period 2012 though to 2016. The sporadic supply to the Netherlands could be attributed to the volatile pricing that the passion fruit juice concentrate market is subject to. Production in top-producer, Ecuador, rises and falls corresponding to local fruit pricing – usually in a three-year cycle. Passion fruit juice concentrate has traded for up to USD15000 in the past few years. Current pricing is around USD7000/tonne.

    FJF_Mar_17_TradeData2

     

     

    By Caroline Calder Trade Data
  • 13 Mar
    Round-up: Citrus processing reports

    Round-up: Citrus processing reports

    BRAZIL – orange juice (CitrusBR)

    As part of the Brazilian industry’s commitment to transparency CitrusBR has reported that global inventories of Brazilian orange juice (FCOJ equivalent) as of 31 December 2016 amounted to 497 383 tonnes. This is a 32% decrease on the  728 865 tonnes on hand the year before.

    The association has also projected that global stock levels of Brazilian FCOJ would fall to just 70 000 tonnes on 30 June 2017. This would represent an 80% drop on the 351 567 tonnes carried into the 2016/17 crop on 30 June 2016.

    BRAZIL – orange juice (Fundecitrus)

    The February 2017 Fundecitrus forecast for orange production for the 2016/17 season in Brazil (São Paulo and West-Southwest Minas Gerais citrus belt) is 244 million boxes (40.8 kg) – unchanged on the December 2016 projection.

    The number of fruits per box has decreased due to the increase in the weight of the fruits caused by heavy rains since December.

    The average fruit droppage rate for all varieties remains at 13.73%. In the face of a small crop, the demand for fruit has boosted the harvesting pace, which has helped maintain low droppage rates.

    MEXICOOrange Juice (USDA)

    Production and processing: Frozen concentrated orange juice (FCOJ) production for 2016/17 (November 2016 through October 2017) is forecast to increase with expected strong demand from processors due to attractive orange juice futures prices. Estimated 2016/17 orange juice production is 170,000 tonnes (65 brix), with production from 2015/16 revised upward to 165,000 tonnes. Deliveries to processors in 2014/15 were also revised upward. The initial forecast for fruit use by processors in 2016/17 is 1.70 million tonnes, compared with 1.60 million tonnes in 2015/16 and 1.55 million tonnes in 2014/15.

    Trade: Estimated trade volume forecasts for exports of orange juice in 2016/17 are 163,000 tonnes. 2014/15 and 2015/16 estimates are revised upwards. Exports of orange juice to the US in 2016/17 are expected to be the same as in 2015/16.

    SPAIN – Orange Juice (USDA) 

    Processing: Spain is preliminarily forecast to process 900,700 tonnes of oranges in 2016/17. This will equate to 70,000 tonnes of concentrate.

    The 2015/16 crop reached  728,000 tonnes producing 56,000 tonnes of concentrate – up on the 820,000 tonnes (64,000 tonnes of concentrate) produced the previous year.

    The total volume of oranges channelled to processing depends on crop quality and quantity of oranges destined for the fresh market, both domestic and foreign.

    CHINA Orange Juice (USDA)

    Production: Estimated orange juice production in 2016/17 (October-September) is 42,000 tonnes, over 8% down on 2015/16.

    Consumption: Forecasts for 2016/17 orange juice domestic consumption down 12% on 2015/16 at 72,700 tonnes, with demand for juice beverages losing momentum since 2014. Key industry contacts agree that although demand for juice from concentrate is falling, the market for 100% fresh orange juice is growing as cold-chain infrastructure, marketing efforts and disposable incomes expand.

    Trade: With the expected drop in overall consumption, forecasts for orange juice imports in 2016/17 are 33,000 tonnes, a drop of 18% on 2015/16. Forecasts for 2016/17 orange juice exports are also down 18% on 2015/16 at 2,300 tonnes due to the anticipated lower production.

    SOUTH AFRICA Orange Juice (USDA)

    Production: Orange juice production in South Africa is forecast to decrease by less than 1% to 44,465 tonnes in 2016/17 (November-October), from 44,570 tonnes in 2015/16. The 2015/16 production of orange juice was revised upwards to 44,570 tonnes. The 2014/15 production of orange juice remains unchanged at 42,163 tonnes

    Consumption: Domestic uptake is expected to increase by 1% to 7,100 tonnes in 2016/17, from 7,000 tonnes in 2015/16. The 2014/15 consumption of orange juice remains unchanged at 6,800 tonnes.

    Trade: 2016/17 exports of orange juice are forecast to decrease by 31% to 36,000 tonnes. The 2015/16 and 2014/15 exports of orange juice remain unchanged at 52,252 tonnes and 44,502 tonnes respectively

    MOROCCOOrange Juice (USDA)

    Production: Fresh oranges delivered to juice processors are currently estimated at about 53,000 tonnes annually.

    Consumption: The local market consumes more than 70% of the estimated overall orange juice production estimated at 50 million litres, of which 20 million litres come from local processing of fresh citrus and the rest from imported juice and concentrates.

    Trade: Imports for 2016/17 (September – October) are forecast to increase slightly to 4,000 tonnes and exports at 3,000 tonnes. Estimated imports for 2015/16 are 3,238 tonnes and exports are 2,946 tonnes.

    COSTA RICAOrange Juice (USDA)

    Trade: Costa Rica exports the majority of its orange production as frozen orange juice concentrate but also exports non-frozen juice concentrate. Exports amounted to 25,519 tonnes valued at USD37.1 million in calendar year 2015 (January-December). This compares with 29,360 tonnes valued at USD51.7 million during the same period in 2014. Data available for January-August 2016 show a significant increase in exports during 2016 reaching 34,824 tonnes valued at USD68.1 million. Higher exports during calendar year 2016 are consistent with higher production in 2015/16. The US continues to be Costa Rica’s main destination for orange juice exports.

    JAPANOrange Juice (USDA)

    Consumption: Domestic consumption for 2016/17 is forecast to decrease by 500 tonnes, a 1% decrease compared with 2015/16.

    Trade: In 2015/16 total imports of orange juice decreased 15% from 2014/15 to 73,143 tonnes. This decline is attributed to large purchases made during MY

    2014/15 when the price of Brazilian orange juice concentrate was low. Brazil is the largest supplier of orange juice to Japan, accounting for about 70% of Japan’s total orange juice imports. The forecast for 2016/17 estimates that total imports will increase by 9% to 80,000 tonnes

    ISRAELOrange Juice (USDA)

    Production: The initial forecast for 2016/17 (October-September) for orange deliveries to processors is 55,000 tonnes showing strong demand against the corresponding period 2015/16 which was estimated at 26,000 tonnes. The forecast for orange juice production for the period 2016/17 is 5,500 tonnes against an estimated figure of 2,600 tonnes for the same period in 2015/16.

    Trade: Imports are forecast to be down year on year from 26,000 tonnes for 2016/17 against 29,000 tonnes for 2015/16. Exports are looking static for 2016/17 and 2015/16 at 14,000 tonnes and 14,400 tonnes respectively.

    ARGENTINA Lemons

    Processing: Fresh lemon for processing in 2016/17 (November-October) is forecast to decrease on the previous year to 1.02 million tonnes. Fresh lemon for processing in 2015/16 is estimated to decrease from 1.2 million tonnes to 1.05 million tonnes. For 2014/2015, fresh lemon for processing remained unchanged at 1.195 million tonnes. Following the practice carried out in the past few years, relatively high volumes of fruit are being devoted for processing as a result of the decision made by the industry to export only fresh lemons meeting higher quality standards, thus restricting the export supply and preventing a steep decrease of international prices.

    By Caroline Calder Trade Data
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