“Anecoop invests around a million euros per year in R+D+i"

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This new variety, a mutation of the traditional Oronules, has the main characteristic of being precocious, as it reaches the market in the month of September. “It happens to be one of the most important projects that we have carried out in our field of Experiments of Museros (Valencia) and it is one in which we have very high expectations. Our profitability forecasts are high thanks to its capability of extending the commercial calendar for citric fruits.”

More than 50.000 tonnes of kaki

On the other hand, the kaki has become another of the star products for Anecoop during the latest years. Although the data for the closing of the campaign have still to be confirmed, the Valencian cooperative expects to have exceeded 50,000 tonnes of kaki. The Persimon Group has consolidated its effort and now accounts for 60% of Bright Red Persimon Kaki exportations.

As Vicente Duart, Ejecutivo de Programas de Anecoop, explains, “The Kaki has not yet exploited all of its possibilities at the commercial level so a balance is expected to be attained between the expected production increase and the sales”. The Persimon Group, a single product group that acts as an operative unit and concentrates all of its supply, is currently reinforcing the presence of the Bright Red Persimon in Europe, a market where this variety is becoming more and more renowned. They are also attempting to introduce it throughout Spain, especially in the north of the country. As well as consumption of the fresh product, Anecoop is already working with new formats and is a pioneer in the commercialisation of 4th range Kaki, on which it has been working for around three years.

The commercialising calendar has been getting longer over the years and today the product has been present in the market for four months. This calendar extension has enabled Anecoop and its associated cooperatives to better manage the increase in their production and comply with the agreements with mass distribution, especially during the last part of the campaign.

“The quality of the fruit in this campaign has been very good and the callipers have been excellent. It happens to be a product that sells very well, it marks the season very well, is a novelty and has been greatly accepted by the consumers. This will be the Persimon Group’s third campaign which, according to Vicente Duart, has been guaranteed by the 100% involvement of the cooperatives which they are working with. “The union which exists in all the fields of action – production, post-harvest and commercialisation-, provide a great deal of power to all the cooperatives to develop their work better”, the executive states.

Line of research

With the aim of promoting a line of research which would enhance the quality and conservation of the Bright Red Kaki, Anecoop signed a collaboration agreement in November with the Valencian Institute of Agricultural Research (IVIA) to carry out research work in common: “Characterisation and control of the kaki’s black patch, caused by Alternaria Alternata”.

The development of the project, signed by the president of Anecoop, Juan Safont and the director of IVIA, Florentino Juste, will be carried out under the management of Antonio Vicent, Lluis Palou y Alejandra Salvador, assistant scientific collaborators of IVIA. The Institute will provide its installations in Moncada (Valencia), its teams and laboratories for the execution of the project. For its part, Anecoop will finance part of the project, supply the material necessary for its development and will provide the support of its technical staff.

Juan Safont, president of Anecoop, reminded us of the importance of preventing possible affections of the fruit, as Alternaria can produce product declines of at least 10% in the warehouse, as well as reducing its commercial life.

Bouquet Exotic

Avocado, cherimoya, mango, papaya, and pomegranate are the fruits which comprise this new range, which Anecoop has grouped together under the brand name of “Bouquet Exotic” as they are products which, despite their greater or lesser diffusion, are still unknown to a percentage of European consumers. In this campaign, Anecoop expects to commercialise between 1.5 and 2 million kilos.

It is a new line which enhances the supply from Anecoop for various commercial chains with which the cooperative is already working with other products throughout the whole year. For its range “Bouquet Exotic”, Anecoop is making a priority commitment to the Spanish product swing to its quality and proximity. The avocado, the cherimoya and the mango come from the south of Spain, the pomegranate from Elche and both the papaya and the pitaya are from the Canary Islands. The company also expects to incorporate several of these products into its line of 4th Range ‘Clink!’ fruit salads, as it has already done with the mango and the pomegranate. The tropical fruits stand out due to the apparent increase in their demand in the European market, as well as their profitability. The main destinations for these products are Germany, France and the United Kingdom, as well as Spain, although there is general demand throughout Europe, which has the tendency to grow.