ClemenGold quality fruit is produced in various regions of South Africa - Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Eastern Cape and the Western Cape. Overall the 2013 crop is looking very good. The Eastern and Western Cape's sizing is slightly bigger than last year and the weather has played along in producing a good quality crop. In some isolated areas towards the North of the country the rainfall was slightly above average, but the fruit still shows to be delivering on the ClemenGold external and internal quality standards. Most of South Africa's ClemenGold crop is exported, with about 1750 tons going into the local top tier retailer, Woolworths. Various ClemenGold line extension products, such as 100% fresh juice, chocolates and marmalade, can also be found on Woolworths' shelves. This helps to extend the visibility of the ClemenGold brand and offers a future avenue for fruit use.
The Citrus Black Spot situation remains a cliffhanger for the South African citrus industry. Although The ClemenGold Company has very important long-term partners in the EU region, the strategy from the start was to responsibly expand the brand into all viable markets. Last year the brand was launched in Hong Kong and this year it is expanding to the Middle East, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and India. Canada is also absorbing more and more ClemenGold volumes. New EU markets for 2013 are Italy, France and Belgium.
Peru is a growing easy peeler supplier and there will be limited volumes packed into the ClemenGold brand during the 2013 Southern hemisphere season.
Market demand is good and ClemenGold is looking forward to a super season with branded fruit in targeted markets all across the globe.
