With 58 thousand tons of summer fruit (stone fruit) marketed, Agrintesa takes stock of the year’s production and performance. “Production has reached good levels,” began director Cristian Moretti, “although 58 thousand tons is not the maximum of our potential. But in light of recent vintages that have been scarcer in terms of quantity due to the weather, we cannot complain. The main production areas where our members operate are Emilia Romagna, Calabria and Piedmont. Overall, we can talk about a satisfactory summer on all fronts.”
Cherries
Agrintesa members harvested about 80 percent of their production potential. “Quality and size have been excellent, and in fact prices have followed this trend as well. Although we experienced losses in quantity around 20 percent, the value more than made up for the drop in quantity. We must also remember the important qualification work developed in recent years both in the field and in the cooperative, including our state-of-the-art sorting plant in Castelfranco Emilia (Modena), our cherry supply chain allows us to offer customers the best in quality and get satisfaction on product value.”
Apricots
“Yields are down in both Emilia Romagna and Calabria on the apricot front. We recorded minus 30 percent in the north and minus 20 percent in the south,” Moretti says. “Our crops were on the markets 4 months, from May to August. At the European level, availability has not been full, and this is now a constant, so demand has always been lively and quotations, in general, good. We will still invest in apricot, qualifying our cadastre with some new varieties that are more in demand and liked by consumers.”
Peaches and nectarines
On the peaches and nectarines front, field yields were also down slightly: “We calculated a 10 percent decrease in Emilia Romagna and a 20 percent decrease in Calabria. Prices were good, and settled, until mid-August(Aug. 15, ed.), at the highest levels in recent years, then stabilized at more ordinary levels. We have late product on sale for 7-10 more days. The season will close well overall.”
“Flat peaches and nectarines from the Ondine project are also registering a very good balance, with high quotations, strong market acceptance and increasing quantities, also because 180 hectares are planted and are gradually entering full production.”
Plums
Varied situation for plums: Chinese-Japanese plums had yields about 25 percent lower than a normal year, while European plums were up 20 percent. “Plum prices have been ordinary and still are; for example, for President and Stanley in the market for at least another 15 days. On the Angeleno front, a plum that is not part of the summer stone fruit group, the harvest is over and yields have been in line with last year. The product will be placed on the market, mainly abroad, over the next few months. Good price expectations, especially given the fact that we are highly recognized and specialized on Angeleno.”
Agrintesa’s vision for fruit growing
“We continue to invest,” Moretti continues, “to defend our producers, support them in production and protect the hectares planted. We are going to support further investments especially on the active defense front such as anti-hail nets and frost protection systems. Another aspect on which we have concrete plans for development concerns varietal renewal, to update the land register with varieties that can combine sustainability, good yields in the field and market appreciation,” the director concludes.
Source: FreshPlaza
Publication date: Fri Sep 19, 2025
