Gisborne lemons continue to be in strong demand in Japan, with local exports expected to double within the next five years. Operations have ramped up to seven-days a week at local citrus exporters Deltapac, as tonnes of lemons are being processed for export. Deltapac owner Russell Gregg said crops were down this year, due to the warmer climate which meant trees had flowered over a longer period of time. But while the numbers are down, fruit size is considerably larger than average. “The Japanese market has a preference for smaller sized lemons, but between 60 to 70 percent of the produce destined for export is either classified as large or extra large, again, due to the weather,” Mr Gregg said. “Although they prefer the fruit to be smaller, we still send the larger fruit over and it doesn’t affect prices. The quality has overall been very good this year.”
The client was happy with the arrivals and the feedback had been positive. Mr.Gregg said he was pleased with how the season had gone. “Because of the number of sets the trees are producing, we will have supply to export right up until November this year, which is good. “It makes it so easy when things go well — the quality of the produce is good and you get no complaints. Growers have done a great job but I guess there is always room to improve.” Grower returns, however, have been affected by the high New Zealand dollar, which increased again yesterday. Because of the high dollar value, exporters could not increase their charges as the Japanese had a level at which they were prepared to pay, and if it went any higher, they would simply stop buying, Mr Gregg said. Around 100,000 tonnes of lemons are exported to Japan from around the world every year, with the United States and South America among the biggest suppliers.
Deltapac is aiming to export somewhere between 200 and 240 tonnes. “The market has been growing every year for the 12 years Deltapac has been exporting to Japan and we are still unable to meet their demand,” Mr Gregg said. “It’s always increasing.” While Deltapac works with a number of contract growers, it also owns its own orchards, including a few young ones which will come into production within the next couple of years. Exports are projected to at least double within five years and Mr Gregg said it was important to keep the focus abroad as there was not the same demand locally. “The local market is actually oversupplied, so if exports diminished there would certainly be a huge glut. Our aim is to continue to have good quality, and the more we can send off for export market, the better off the growers are.”
