Malta efforts to guarantee healthy AGRICULTURAL products - Esfuerzos de Malta para garantizar productos AGRÍCOLAS saludables

Photo source: http://iip.gov.mt/

According to latest figures presented by the European Commission it was informed that only 6% of the agricultural products in Malta had high levels of pesticides. In 2014, the Maltese Authority tested samples of more than 170 food products. Only 10 were found to contain high levels of pesticides and immediately action was taken against those responsible for their production. There were cases where they intervened at a field filled with vines preventing it to be sold in the market, or greenhouses with tomatoes that were stopped its distribution in the market.
Source: Maria Muscat (http://www.tvm.com.mt)

Azerbaijani FRUIT production doubles over past 10 years - Producción de FRUTAS en Azerbaijan se duplica en los últimos 10 años

Azerbaijani fruits (Photo from http://photos.uncorneredmarket.com/)

Azerbaijani fresh fruit and berry production totals about 1 million tons now, twice as high as in 2005, and analysts see high potential in the fruit and vegetable sector in Azerbaijan, which will be unlocked in the nearest few years. The stonefruit segment shows the largest development rate with an increase of 250% in apricot production over the past decade, and a rise of 300% in production of peaches and nectarines over the same period. Production of pome fruits has been growing less rapidly, but the past decade's results are also impressive: production of apples and pears has grown by 100% and 50%, respectively. Similar situation is observed in the segment of berries, which production has almost doubled over the past 10 years.

This positive production trend will only intensify in the nearest years thanks to the factor of intensively developing sector, which is shown by evolution of yields in Azerbaijani orchards. According to official statistics, orchards' productivity has grown by 50-100% in the country in the past decade. The market experts see an increase in exports as the main driver for the sector development. In addition, Azerbaijan exports about a half of annually produced volumes of stonefruits. Moreover, the demand for Azerbaijani produce will only be growing in the external market thanks to significant changes in the market environment in countries near and far abroad.

Source: http://www.fruit-inform.com

La FRUTICULTURA tropical con buenas perspectivas en Argentina - Tropical FRUIT production with good prospects in Argentina

Foto: http://noticias.iruya.com/

El referente de la Asociación de Productores de Frutas y Hortalizas de la provincia argentina de Salta, José Luis Checa, consideró que la fruticultura tropical se presenta como una actividad muy prometedora para la economía regional. "En el noroeste argentino (NOA) contamos con 3.500 hectáreas de banano, 350 de mango, 200 de palta (aguacate), 70 de papaya y 25 de maracuyá, todos cultivos en expansión realizados a pulmón por los casi 200 productores de la zona", sintetizó.

Además señaló que hay un conglomerado (cluster) de frutas tropicales en el que se involucran distintos sectores de la sociedad y que colaboran con el desarrollo.

También destacó el respaldo del Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria, INTA Yuto, como principal impulsor de los cultivos tropicales, mediante el asesoramiento, proveedor de plantas a través de su cooperadora, y artífice de varios planes de promoción de mango, papaya y palta, entre otros.

"Resulta de importancia la colaboración de consorcios de riego, asociaciones de productores y del Programa de Servicios Agrícolas Provinciales (PROSAP)", dijo Checa. Explicó que "las frutas tropicales son generadoras de mucho empleo en la zona, ya que las operaciones que demandan las plantaciones se realizan artesanalmente, con la particularidad de que el obrero rural tiene trabajo y vivienda todo el año en el mismo establecimiento".

"Así se torna una herramienta importantísima para el desarrollo de las economías regionales", precisó al señalar que "otra gran ventaja de estos cultivos es la sustitución de importaciones". Es un "dato que se presenta como una alternativa sólida para evitar fuga de divisas, debido a que el mercado interno existe para este tipo de productos: sólo tenemos que hacerlo nuestro". Lo más sobresaliente que resaltó "son las cualidades de la fruta que se producen en nuestro subtrópico: en cuanto a sabor, no nos gana nadie", se animó a decir Checa.

"La fruta que producimos tiene mayor concentración de sólidos solubles. Con respecto a la sanidad, tenemos zonas libres de las principales plagas y enfermedades de las regiones con las que competimos", expresó. Ejemplificó que en bananas no realizan ninguna pulverización aérea de fungicidas, mientras en el trópico hacen 40 aplicaciones anuales. "Esto requiere que, tanto el sector público como el privado, cuidemos este estatus sanitario, que brinda ventajas comparativas a nuestra zona", añadió. Pidió que se valore "la gran importancia que actualmente tienen y, fundamentalmente, tendrán los frutos tropicales para las economías regionales del NOA y NEA".

Fuente: http://noticias.terra.com.ar/

Una sola región exporta el 90% de los ARÁNDANOS peruanos - One region exports 90% of the Peruvian BLUBERRIES

Cosechera peruana de arándano (Fuente: http://ww2.kqed.org)

Las exportaciones de arándano de La Libertad entre enero y noviembre del 2015 registraron una facturación de unos US$ 76.950.417, lo cual significó un crecimiento del 236 % comparado con el mismo periodo del 2014, según informó el Área de Inteligencia Comercial de la Asociación de Exportadores (Adex).

En tanto, los envíos de este producto a nivel nacional alcanzaron US$ 81.921.547. En relación a los mercados que más consumen esta fruta, el primer puesto lo ocupó E.E.U.U. con US$ 43.938.221, seguido por los Países Bajos con US$ 21.328.638, Reino Unido con US$ 9.163.186, Hong Kong con US$ 1.231.158, Singapur con US$ 308.938 y España con US$ 239.106, entre otros.

Sin duda, uno de los incrementos más notorios en la exportación de productos agrícolas del departamento de La Libertad fue el arándano, logrando actualmente ser líderes indiscutibles dentro del país al representar más del 90 % de la exportación nacional. Le siguen en participación Áncash con 3 %, Lima 2 % e Ica 1 %.
Fuente: http://www.laindustria.pe

Biological control of thrips in protected STRAWBERRY production - Control biológico de trips en la producción de FRUTILLA (FRESA) bajo cubierta

Predatory mite Neosiulus cucumeris feeding on a thrip (http://www.biologicalservices.com.au)

The thrips Frankliniella occidentalis is a prioritary problematic in protected production of strawberry. A cross border program involved partners in the north of France and in Belgian Flanders and was conducted between 2012 and 2014. The aim was to develop integrated biological control. The study of the thrips population dynamics and of the damaging effect found that the pest population was able to develop early and strongly, particularly for repeat flowering varieties. Then, alternative control strategies were evaluated, strategies that are based on mass trapping, prophylactic measures and release of the predatory mites Neoseiulus cucumeris and Amblyseius swirskii. The results found that integrated biological control is an efficient and sustainable method, with possible increases in yields and a strongly decreased use of pesticides.
Source: Quennesson, S.; Dumortier, F.; Marez, T. de; Dahinger, V.; Petit, K.; Oste, S. 5th Conférence Internationale sur les Méthodes Alternatives de Protection des Plantes, 11-13 mars, 2015, Nouceau Sièle, Lille, France (http://www.cabdirect.org/abstracts/20153416985.html).

Finding shelf space in supermarkets for new FRUIT and VEGETABLES varieties and differentiated products is becoming an issue - Encontrar espacio en las góndolas de los supermercados para las nuevas variedades de FRUTAS y VERDURAS y otros productos diferenciados se está poniendo complicado

With display space for apples already crowded on retail shelves, will there be space for new varieties coming to market? (Photo by TJ Mullinax/Good Fruit Grower)

As growers produce larger crops comprising both mainstay and new varieties, marketers face greater challenges garnering retail shelf space. Supermarkets are not miraculously getting bigger, and that space has to come from somewhere — either from new varieties, organics or competing products like citrus fruit, according to Steve Lutz, Columbia Marketing International’s vice president of marketing.

Produce space is governed by retailers’ perceptions of consumer preference and what they think they can sell. And the pressure is on the industry to remain competitive. As an example, Lutz said, look at Budweiser: Sales have fallen roughly 40 percent in the past 20 years — from 49.2 million barrels in 1988 to 17.2 million barrels in 2011 — thanks to the booming craft beer market.

“Go into a grocery store today and look at the beer display. It’s now full of multiple brands,” Lutz said during the 111th Annual Meeting of the Washington State Tree Fruit Association, held in December in Yakima, Washington. “The question is, ‘How will I get it on the shelf, and how will I get it off the shelf once I’ve produced it?’”

Why worry?

The new orchards being planted each year mean there are a lot of young trees with new products and new varieties that will be bearing fruit and competing for space at the retail level, Lutz said. At the same time, consumption has been flat.

“The variety that we offer consumers offers us more opportunities to be successful with our products, but it puts demand on space,” he said. “When we produce the next Cosmic Crisp, where are we going to put it?” Apple, pear and cherry growers aren’t the only growers producing new varieties, either. Variety is up everywhere — grapes, tomatoes, melons, all major commodities — as well as the growing organic sector.

The Costcos and Sam’s Clubs of the world are unlikely to expand their produce footprint. Sam’s Club averages seven varieties of apple, but “just try to get an eighth,” Lutz said. “It is very, very difficult. They will say they have an expectation that your product will drive x number of sales per store, per week. If you can’t do that, we don’t want it.” Plus, as complexity increases in the marketplace, so do mistakes at the retail level, Lutz said. “It’s easy for the retail companies that we rely on to get it wrong, to make mistakes and be less than optimal.”

Driving retail

There’s a relationship between what products pay to a supermarket and what space retailers are willing to offer that product, Lutz said. Apples have the largest footprint of space at retail, but because of that large footprint, the dollars per square foot are among the lowest of all fruits, posing an even greater challenge to expand that space.

Retailers’ approaches to sales factor in as well.

During the marketing season for Washington’s 2014 record apple crop of 140 million packed boxes, the top 15 supermarket chains sold more apples, but the bottom 15 chains not only lost dollars, they also lost volume, Lutz said. Weaker-performing retailers tend to focus on a core low price and lack variety in their produce departments, with no new space or new items and no premium selections or upscale packages. Almost 80 percent of their sales and volume come from Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Gala, Granny Smith and McIntosh, which means they’re still “approaching the apple category like it’s Budweiser,” Lutz said.

Conversely, top-performing retailers are generating only about 45 percent of their revenue from those five varieties, making greater gains with newer varieties like Honeycrisp, Jazz, Envy, Ambrosia, Cripps Pink and SweeTango. Strong retailers allocate space to large volumes, with solid premium selections and packaging options. They also leverage organics and organize flow in their departments to steer consumers to higher-value apples.

Lower-performing stores will put a familiar variety of apple for 49 cents per pound next to Honeycrisp at $2.99 per pound. “What message is that sending to the consumer? Buy the cheap apples,” he said. “It’s a self-defeating strategy that is an absolute waste of space.” Marketers have opportunities in the retail market if they remember that packaging sells and displays matter, Lutz said. “There is a space race going on, but we have spectacular new products coming to market. You have to execute with marketing, and you have to execute with packaging.” •
Source: Shannon Dininny (http://www.goodfruit.com)

Population decline of crop bee POLLINATORS - Declinamiento de la población de POLINIZADORES de los cultivos

http://www.21stcentech.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Honeybee.jpg

Bees are the main pollinators in nature, being of fundamental importance of

many agricultural crops around the world, causing improvements in the

productivity of these crops. The pollination by bees contributes to improving

the quality and / or quantity of produced fruits and seeds. However, despite

all importance, the bees are in the process of disappearing in several parts  

the world, mainly in Europe and in some countries in North America. Recent

surveys are showing a large decline in native bees and honeybees (Apis

mellifera), mainly as a result of environmental changes, that cause severe

negative effects on the availability of food for the bees. So, this review aims

to reinforce the importance of bees in crop pollination, and warn about the

current situation and the population decline of different groups of these

important pollinators.

Source: Mikail Olinda de Oliveira, Acta Apicola Brasilica, 2015. Full text: http://www.gvaa.com.br/revista/index.php/APB