A fresh approach to dried fruit and natural dried foods

June 2010

News

Warm Mediterranean weather favours the new crop   Our correspondent in Izmir reports that the raw material price for Turkish sultanas has increased by almost 14% on the Izmir Bourse over the last two weeks from TL 2200 – TL2450 pmt which is around $1580 pmt. Exports have reached about 165,000 mt which is almost 50,000 less than the same period for last year. Turkish packers are hopeful that sales will increase going forward as buyers start the build their stocks. Even so however, there should be a carry in of between 25,000 to 30,000 metric tonnes. Estimates of this years new crop continue to vary wildly, with the most pessimistic forecasts being around 230,000 tonnes and the most optimistic at around 300,000 tonnes. A fair guess may therefore be somewhere in the middle. Prices of specially cleaned standard no.9 sultanas are around $1780 - $1800 pmt FOB Izmir and although most packers are still reluctant to offer new crop, new season prices would seem likely to be around $1700 - $1750 pmt.  News from California suggests that prices for Select raisins are likely to remain firm due to the shortage of unsold stocks now available. As an indication Select Grade Thompson seedless raisins are being quoted between $0.87 - $0.89 per lb C&F Felixstowe. The major problem is the lack of offer from alternative origins to help persuade the major producers in Turkey and California to reduce their prices. Dried fruit remains very much a commodity based article rather than a luxury and its cost should be based on the actual cost of production and the global availability. It is possible that consumers had become used to lower costs and that todays levels may well be the norm going forward. If however Turkey has a surplus of fruit there may well be a significant decrease in price before the end of the year.

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