Cheers to Cherries

The cherry season started off with some difficulty due to the Spanish Fruit availability, as the season peaked the fruit sharply improved greatly. AMS have had a very successful season witih ASDA having sold more fruit than expected.

The procurement team have focussed on developing growers over a wider area in Europe ensuring that customers receive a consistent quality supply. As the main summer crop season drew to a close towards the end of August the prices rose as the availability dropped.

The procurement team are now investigating the supply of cherries from the Southern Hemisphere. Countries include Chile, Argentina, Australia and South Africa. We expect to have the first availability of fruit from South Africa during the first week of November.

The supply of cherries from the USA is a valuable part of the procurement plan. Although it is an expensive product to import it proves a useful insurance policy for any difficulties that may present themselves in the availability of European fruit. AMS director George Beach took a five day trip to the USA at the end of July with a view to gaining a better understanding of the American cherry business.

The American season starts in California in later May, moves to Washington during the end of July and August then it finishes in British Colombia. It is vital to have a range of growers available to supply fruit, as the volatility of the product causes a lack of consistency from year to year and even week to week (nothing new to strawberry growers). A larger grower base helps to ensure a continuity of supply of high quality product. George visited four growers, Orchard View in Oregon, Dovex in the Yakima area, Colombia Marketing International in Wenatchee and Brewster Heights located in Brewster. Being located in four different production areas means each grower experiences varying growing conditions. The growers each had their own packhouse with a water flotation hydro cool grading system. George was able to see the whole process from how the product is harvested in the Orchards right through to meeting the freight forwarder to learn how the fruit is handled and put onto the plane. Although sea freight trials are taking place with modified atmospheric packaging the fruit quality is so imperative that fruit is still being air freighted in the main to the UK at this stage.

The USA trip ended with a visit to the AMS Exotic offices, where George caught up with Thierry and the rest of the team to discuss the Cherry supply to AMS Exotic's European cutomers with the new growers that George had met during his trip and their intention of expanding sales of fresh vegetables and herbs for the food service industry inito Europe.

Autumn 2002