APRIL 2008 NEWSLETTER
Welcome to the April newsletter.
Over the last few months the program has involved several strands of activity, all designed to maintain and develop our market position from a low point in 2007. The news that the USA and China have applied to export apples to Australia with Biosecurity Australia having commenced the IRA process, provides the impetus for growers and packers to seriously consider the Pink Ladytm export market. At the same time the market for Pink Lady™ is growing as can be seen from the latest market report from Coregeo. As we quickly near harvest time it is critical that we pay attention to the fairly basic but important message in the Grower alert.
Contained in this newsletter is the following:
1) Program – Marketing update – Neil Offner
2) IPLA Open Day reminder – 17 & 18 April
3) Licensing and service costs
4) Audit announcement – congratulations to Jane Lovell and the TQA team on working with AusQual to put together the audit package
5) Grower Alert No.4 – the alerts have designed to be timely reminders at different stages of the season
Program – Marketing update – Neil Offner
The UK market for the Pink Lady™ category continues to strengthen overall. Sales data for January and February 2008 shows 23% increases respectively over the same periods in 2007. The retailer Morrisons is now selling Pink Lady™ apples and not Cripps Pink and this in both a contributing factor and a reinforcement of the strength of the brand in this market. Very similar and positive, brand development is reported in the large USA market, Europe, South Africa and South America.
The Pink Lady Australia (PLA) “stretch” target for 2008 is 100 containers and this will not be met but volumes will be up on 2007.
Growing conditions were excellent in most growing regions up until the early March heatwaves which seems to have impacted mostly long term in South Australia. At the time of writing, fruit condition for export was still being assessed in the Adelaide Hills.
The positive aspects to come from 2008 program development work to date are:
- Export commitment from new participants in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria
- Continuing commitment in Western Australia despite the difficulties of some previous years
- Strong UK category manager support whereby purchasing interest is exceeding the Australian volume commitments
- Advances made on technical work
Depending on developments in South Australia in particular, the anticipated program is in the order of 60+ containers. The UK interest exceeds this by around 30% as things stand at present.
Teleconferences are now being regularly convened for exporters and other interested parties on UK market and other Southern Hemisphere supplier updates with a view to optimally positioning our product in the market place.
Following the January 2008 PLA post-harvest workshop and associated meetings in Melbourne, work has progressed on an apple rot control project and bulk shipment studies.
In addition, Tasmanian Quality Assured has held GlobalGAP and other system information sessions in Western Australia and Batlow and is working on plans to hold a similar session in the Goulburn Valley once the picking season is mostly behind us.
In summary, the UK market is performing strongly and more volume is required to secure this market in the long term.
A lot of work is occurring in Australia to address the technical risks of exports and to bring more sense to certifications and auditing.
Neil Offner will be spending a lot of time in all growing districts over the next few weeks with current arrangements made to be in Victoria from 7 to 14 April and in WA in the week 28 April.
IPLA Open Day – 17 & 18 April
This is a reminder of the IPLA Open Day which is being conducted by the International Pink Lady Alliance in conjunction with APAL and Montague Fresh. An excellent program has been developed with the opportunity to see Cripps Pink, Ruby Pink and Rosy Glow side by side in the orchard at Montague Fresh, Narre Warren on 17 April. An additional visit to Harcourt has been organised the following day.
If you are interested in attending please contact Leanne Groves at APAL: office@apal.org.au
Numbers are limited – this is a great opportunity to meet people from many global points.
Licensing and service costs
Last year Pink Lady Australia licensed exporters for the first time as part of the international process of Pier to Pier licensing – designed to maintain the integrity of and further promote the Pink Ladytm brand from source to destination. Pink Lady Australia Ltd has been appointed the master license holder for Australia by Apple and Pear Australia Ltd. In turn Pink Lady Australia Ltd sub-licenses exporters to export.
This year the Pink Lady Australia Board established some criteria which included experience as an exporter, previous experience and record as a Pink Ladytm exporter and/or volume of product available. The Pink Lady Australia Board has agreed to license the following companies: Craig Mostyn, Oasis Fresh, Plummers Border Valley Orchards, Joyson Orchards, Holman Fresh, and Montague Fresh. There are a couple of potential other organisations who may be licensed if they meet the above criteria.
The Board has decided to budget very conservatively this year for financial prudence and following a tough year in 2007. The service fee has therefore been increased to $1.40 per 12 kg carton. The figure will be rebated back to the usual $1.25 figure if the volume exceeds a certain threshold.
AUS-QUAL Pty and Pink Lady Australia – a collaborative approach to meeting market requirements
As part of the Horticulture Australia Limited funded project looking at overcoming barriers to exporting Pink Ladytm apples, Pink Lady Australia asked eligible certification bodies to tender for provision of audit services. Pink Lady Australia is delighted to announce Aus-Qual Pty Ltd have been chosen as the preferred certification body for GlobalGAP audits. This is good news for Pink Lady Australia members, as there is now a cheaper option for GlobalGAP audits.
For growers working to GlobalGAP the deal is as follows;
• Growers pay a one-off Application Fee of $250 (excluding GST)
• The annual audit cost is $600 (excluding GST)
• GlobalGAP registration fees of approximately $160/year (dependent on exchange rate and size of orchard)
• There are no additional costs for travel or accommodation
In addition, other proprietary quality assurance and food safety systems may be audited at the same time for discounted rates. For instance Freshcare can be added for an additional $95 (excluding GST).
Jane Lovell, Project Manager for the Pink Lady Australia project said, “Growers raised the issue of audit expense with us during recent visits to the main Pink Ladytm growing regions of Australia. We are very pleased to be able to recommend AUS-QUAL as the preferred certification body for Pink Lady Australia. Not only are AUS-QUAL’s prices competitive, our experience with them over a number of years indicates that their auditors are thorough while at the same time being practical and “grower-friendly”. By having a preferred certification body we are able to develop an ongoing relationship that will allow us to discuss and resolve any compliance issues. Being able to pick up the phone and iron out any misunderstandings between the growers and the certification body is a real benefit for the whole Pink Lady Australia program.”
Growers interested in accessing this special deal should contact Andrew Brown at AUS-QUAL on 07 3361 9233 or email andrew.brown@ausqual.com.au
2007/08 APPLE SEASON: AFFCO GROWER ALERT NUMBER 4
GROWERS OF PINK LADY™ APPLES
The picking of Pink Lady™ apples is drawing closer in all growing regions in Australia and this is a critical time for the export program in terms of fruit being picked at its optimum and allocated in storage for this purpose.
The basic principles of optimum picking would be well known to all growers and packers but are summarised below as a reminder.
Pink Lady™ apples must be harvested when mature, but at an early stage of ripening. It is a generally accepted principle that to obtain maximum storage life, fruit must be harvested at, or close to, it’s pre-climacteric respiration minimum. Fruit at this stage may appear ‘too green’ but it has completed maturation and therefore contains its maximum carbohydrate reserve.
Picking at optimum maturity minimises disorders and maximises storage life and post harvest quality.
Fruit colour is not always a good indicator of maturity. Waiting for colour can significantly reduce storage potential. Maturity of fruit from any one variety varies between blocks even on the same orchard.
Best Management Practices
• Predict harvest dates
• Start measuring maturity prior to predicted harvest dates
• Use a range of parameters to determine maturity
Accepted maturity parameters
• Starch-Iodine test (measuring the degree to which starch has converted to sugars)
• Firmness (rule of thumb for export: 8-9 kg)
• Total Soluble Solids
• Ground colour
• Internal Ethylene
Acknowledgement: This general information and some of the wording has been extracted from training materials developed in South Australia by the Apple and Pear Growers Association of SA Inc and Rural Solutions, Department of Primary Industries, SA
If you have questions regarding any item in this newsletter, please contact Andrew Dick on 03 5420 7444 or andrewd@affco.com.au
Disclaimer: AFFCO and PLA Limited cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of this newsletter or the validity of technical or market comments. In many cases, the contents reflect individual comments on hookups. AFFCO and PLA Limited members need to make their own commercial decisions.
