nd export season of sweet potato in 2014-2015 is starting this week and the first shipments with fresh sweet potato are leaving Israel port this week.According to information that is coming from different markets all around the world, the shortage of this product in the United States is expected to continue in the near future.
Also, we can see that there is a trend of interest in sweet potato on the Israeli local market and other different markets in the world, probably because of the product’s high nutritional value, and the demand is rising respectively.
Consequently we expect relatively high demands and high prices early in the season,” so said Yitzhak Carmy, CEO of Carmy Export Israel.
For now, the approximation of expected export quantities for sweet potato is at about 4,000 tons in 6 kg and 15 kg boxes, and at about 6,000 tons that are intended for the local market.
The last sweet potatoes’ Export season of 2013-2014 started quite normally in September 2013 with normal crops and excellent quality, due to the comfortable weather conditions in the summer of 2013.
Most of the product was exported to Europe (Netherlands and the United Kingdom), at a total of 2,000 tons. Most of this amount was sent out in the period between September and the end of December 2013, just when there was a shortage of sweet potatoes in the United States.
The prices in Europe were relatively normal but due the growing production costs and high rates for water and fertilizer the profit was cut to minimum.
However, we have seen that the demand for sweet potato in the local market rose, and gave comparatively higher profits than in previous years. Til the end of July we have sent more than 6,000 tons to the local market.
This season we expect much higher demand and respectively higher prices in Europe.
Our warehouse is ready after finishing all the needed preparations for the upcoming season, the fields are looking great, the weather is quite comfortable and we hope to satisfy all our clients and partners demands.
