Under the three-year contract with Italian importers, grapefruit exports will rise from 600,000 crates in the 2004-05 season to 720,000 in two years.
Italy will buy 600,000 crates of regular and red grapefruits in a $10 million deal, says Plants Production and Marketing Board director general Michael Ayalon.
Israeli citrus exporters signed the three-year deal with a delegation of Italian fruit importers. Under the deal, Israel's will export 35% more grapefruits in the 2004-05 season than in the previous season. Exports will increase by 10% a year over the next two years, to 720,000 crates.
Ayalon said the deal was unusual, since Italy had abandoned the Israeli market in recent years, due to the security situation, and consumption of Jaffa citrus had been gradually declining. He added that the price of the deal would reduce the risks for citrus growers, since it was 20-40% higher than other alternatives in the market.
Under the agreement, $500,000 will be invested in an ad campaign for the Jaffa brand, Israel's citrus brand.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on September 23, 2004