New Zealand braeburn crop down on forecast

Last week Pipfruit New Zealand Inc undertook a survey of Royal Gala and Braeburn in storage and still to be exported.
The completion of the Controlled Atmosphere coolstorage programme and the last shipping week for fruit to arrive in the EU without attracting a duty provided an excellent opportunity to survey the remainder of the 2007 export crop.
One of the conclusions from the data indicates that the export Royal Gala and Braeburn crops are expected to be lower than our original forecasts, said Chairman Ian Palmer today.
We are looking at a global Braeburn crop of 107.000 tons, some 10.000 tons lighter than predicted. Royal Gala is also down but only by about 5%.
While the gross crop was in line with the estimate, seasonal influences have lowered the volume suitable for the demanding export market.
This should help to maintain the stability we are seeing in our major markets, especially in the important European market.
The critical message here is that our volume of Braeburn will be short, continuing to underpin its global demand.