The daily news service and bulletin will resume on Monday 9 August
South African state-owned logistics firm Transnet was hit yesterday by a suspected cyber attack, which is affecting container terminal operations in Durban.
For the first time, Ecuadorian banana shipments to international markets in the first half of the year were lower than for the corresponding period in the previous year.
Global production for 2020/21 is estimated up 4% to a record 33.3m MT, with growth expected in nearly every market.
The Israeli government has unveiled a plan to lower fresh produce costs by cutting customs duties and opening the sector to competition.
Box rates have spiked by as much as three or four times since the onset of the pandemic and are likely to remain high in 2022 as the global demand for goods continues to outpace available capacity.
If fully implemented, the French ban on the sales of fruit and vegetables with identifying stickers will threaten US exports of sweet potatoes and grapefruit.
The leading Chilean shipper has directed funds to the Valdivian Coastal Reserve in Chile, conservation of the Amazon Rainforest and participation in a wind farm in India.
In the first 6 months of the year, the value of Turkish citrus exports increased by 13% compared to the same period of 2020.
The port of Durban and the arterial routes and railways to the port have reopened, while all cold storage facilities in KwaZulu-Natal are fully secured and operational.
Although the season officially begins in September, fruit farmers and exporters are already working to meet the significant water, labour, packaging and logistical challenges of the forthcoming campaign.
At CHF13.3bn, the 3PL service provider's net turnover for H1 2021 was 35% higher than in the same period of last year, while EBIT more than doubled to CHF1.0n.
About US$28m worth of fresh mangoes were exported from India last year against a high of around US$195m worth of the fruit and associated products in 2016.
The Iraqi and Russian markets jointly accounted for 60% of the value of Iranian apple exports last season, which totalled 885K MT.
The volume of French apples this season is forecast to be significantly lower than last year, while pears and cherries may see their lowest yields for 46 years.
The world's largest fresh produce company set terms for its initial public offering on Monday with plans to offer 26m shares priced at US$20-$23 each.
China is expected to double imports of blueberries from the southern hemisphere's largest blueberry shipper, with total exports this season forecast to rise above 200K MT.
Turkish exports of frozen fruit and vegetables saw a 32% increase in H1, with the global demand for the products soaring during the coronavirus pandemic.
Dutch customs officers have seized three tonnes of cocaine worth an estimated €225m, which had been hidden in vats of banana puree shipped from Ecuador.
The value of Vietnamese fruit and vegetables exports this year will exceed US$4bn if the pace in H1 is maintained in the second half of this year.
Growers in the north have been diverting their fruit to other ports across the country, while citrus from other regions continues to be exported from Cape Town and Coega.
Total US reefer trade in Q1 increased 1.5% from Q4 2020, with a 9% spike in imports offset by a 7.6% decline in exports during the period.
The New Zealand integrated kiwifruit producer says it is looking to buy farmland that will add around 1.5m trays of kiwifruit for export every year.
The Chinese market accounted for 52% of Taiwan’s fresh fruit exports in the first half of this year, down from 75% a year earlier.
The industry body estimates that industry losses this year will be in the region of NZ$130-$150m, with the economic multiplier in the region of 3-5 times that figure.
An outbreak of the virus among the stevedores working the vessel has further delayed offloading the citrus in the Chinese Port of Tianjin.
Taiwan is to ship 5 tonnes of bananas to the Tokyo Olympics for consumption at the athletes' village for the duration of the games, the Council of Agriculture confirmed today.
The 11,200 m2 Mooketsi Pack house in Limpopo will be one of the largest post-harvest avocado handling facilities in the world.
The Australian banana farming group says it expects a 50% jump in its headcount as a result of its decision to diversify, taking total staff numbers beyond 900.
Although China's apple reserves have decreased from 5m tonnes to 3m tonnes since May, the latter figure still marks a historic high for this period.
Iran's customs office says the country had a US$71.3m surplus from a trade programme last year that conditioned banana imports on the export of apples.
In response to the continuing violence and looting, Maersk says it has shut down all its depots, warehouses and cold stores in Durban and Johannesburg.
The value of Honduran banana exports reached US$78.1m at the end of the first semester of 2021, a drop of 27.9% compared to the corresponding period in 2020.
The frostiest April since records began, a colder than average May and recent violent thunderstorms will take their toll on this year's apple crop.
The Taiwanese carrier says it is to spend nearly US$40m for 6,000 refrigerated containers from China, bringing its fleet, including subsidiaries, to 78,800 boxes.
The first of three reefer vessels carrying South African citrus to China is discharging its cargo after a 6-week delay.
US President Joe Biden's Order specifically encourages the US FMC 'to ensure vigorous enforcement against shippers charging American exporters exorbitant charges.'
The Chilean Citrus Committee says that the 7% year-on-year forecast rise in clementine volumes will actually be closer to 14%.
Peruvian onion exports reached a record figure of 256K MT in 2020, with the United States absorbing 68% of the total.
Despite the significant headwinds faced by shippers, the volume of exports in H1 was down 2% while the value increased 3% on last year.
The post-Brexit bilateral Enhanced Trade Partnership means that the UK has been able to export apples to India for the first time in 50 years.
Up to US$1m of fruit en route to South Africa's principal citrus port has been destroyed in the protests and looting that have followed the arrest of former president Jacob Zuma.
The daily cherry crop harvest in Washington State starts at 1.00 a.m. as pickers armed with headlamps and roving spotlights attempt to beat the daytime heat.
Seeking to build on the swing towards healthy breakfast options, Florida's $101bn budget for the fiscal year includes $27.7m to support the citrus industry.
The producer of the 'Holiday' variety in California's San Joaquin Valley has become the first sustainably grown certified table grape producer in the United States.
The latest projected export volume for 2021 is now almost 7m cartons lower than the March estimate.
The 3PL service provider is set to further expand into the seafood logistics market, agreeing to buy the specialist Norwegian air freight forwarder.
The report published in association with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development projects a 56% rise in global avocado exports by 2030.
A change in shopping habits combined with a move to being more health conscious saw sales of British apples and pears rocket during the lockdown.
Despite a reduction in total exports in June, the rise in shipments from the state-owned agribusiness offset the reduction in volume from the other two major exporters.
For the first time, late-season varieties will originate from Herefordshire and Scotland, meaning good availability of UK cherries all the way through to late September.
Kenya is ready to resume mango exports to the European Union in September, after an eight-year self-imposed ban resulting from interceptions due to fruit flies.
Fruitometry provides digital services to orchardists and pack houses using artificial intelligence, which can estimate the volume of a fruit crop by scanning orchards.
Japan and the United States have asked India to clarify its reasons for the frequent export bans and clarify why it has not opted for an export quota.
The Kivits Logistics Group has reached an agreement with reefer terminal handler Belgian New Fruit Wharf to buy 100% of the shares of its Rotterdam Fruit Wharf.
While rates between Asia and the US east coast rose to $10,218 per FEU last week, shippers are reportedly paying thousands more in premiums to secure a booking.
The world's second largest avocado exporter after Mexico shipped 317K MT in the first half of this year, putting it on course for a record seasonal total of 490K MT.
The container lines stand to make a decade's worth of pre-tax profit in 2021, a war chest that will render them immune to freight rate and capacity trends for the next few years.
Belgium is reported to have been chosen for the launch due to its image as a country that connects the lifestyles of northern and southern Europe.
Ecuador's Anti-Narcotics Police and its Banana Cluster have joined forces to fight the narco-crime affecting the country's agro-export sector.
Last week's heat severely damaged fruit crops in the Okanagan and Fraser valleys, with the two major fruit-growing regions experiencing multiple days of temperatures above 40 C.
The increase in demand from China underpinned the 37% year-on-year rise in the value of Del Monte Philippines' fresh pineapple exports.
Throughput of apples and pears at the Argentinean port of San Antonio Este fell 6.4% year-on-year to the lowest total in the port's history.
The UK's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has ended the 6-month authorisation of imports at a time when exports to the EU were not permitted.
New Zealand horticulture exports weathered the effects of COVID-19 to reach new heights, climbing to a record-breaking NZ$6.6bn in the year ending 30 June 2020.
The multinational's chartering arm Great White Fleet has acquired 850 containers refrigerated by Carrier Transicold's energy-efficient units.
The Peruvian Association of Citrus Producers ProCitrus estimates total citrus exports will reach 300K MT in 2021.
The French exotic fruit distributor has won the right to market 50% of the Madagascan litchi crop, a contract that has been shared between Greenyard and Compagnie Fruitiere since 2011.
Singapore-listed Dukang Distillers has completed its restructuring with the acquisition of a kiwifruit business and will change its name to China Shenshan Orchard Holdings.
The monthly production capacity of Chinese container manufacturers has now reached 500,000 TEU, according to vice minister of transport Zhao Chongjiu.
With more fruits on course to be approved by China, the US$1.3bn fresh trade surplus in the first six months of the year is set to increase.
The US Food and Drug Administration has classified Dihydroquercetin, a powerful antioxidant found in red apples in the highest concentrations, 'Generally Recognised As Safe'.
An ANZ Agri-Focus report pinpoints the shortage of labour and logistical issues for a potential loss in industry earnings in excess of NZ$100m year-on-year.
The installation of a remote monitoring system for reefer containers is credited with allowing the Port of Hong Kong to run smoothly while other major ports in South China struggle.
British strawberries could be on supermarket shelves nine months of the year using a new vertical-growing technique that is also better for the environment.
The Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation said that the volume of agricultural exports increased 15% year-on-year to more than 4m MT.
The Moroccan Ministry of Agriculture has denied rumours questioning the quality of watermelons sold in the domestic and export markets.
The 2,100 TEU feeder vessel is to be built by Hyundai Mipo Dockyards and is due for delivery in mid-2023.
The kiwifruit marketer says it will work on an alternative approach to the unauthorised SunGold plantings in China
Despite a 14% contraction in export volume, the Philippines remained as the world's second top exporter of bananas for the third consecutive year.
