The last few days have seen the inauguration of Agrexco’s 2,400 sq.m Arava Terminal in ’Ayin Yehav, part of the company’s efforts to upgrade the handling of peppers in the Arava area, Israel’s largest pepper-growing region.  Rani Friedlander, Director of the Vegetable Export Division says the terminal is a frontline station for the company. 

 

For the last decade, the majority of Agrexco’s European exports have been made by sea, with most of the produce being transported by the company’s two ships. Peppers, for example, arrive on store shelves on the Continent within a fortnight, with their shelf-life ranging between 17 to 23 days.  The toughest challenge facing every vegetable exporter is arriving at European supermarkets with super fresh products which have the longest possible shelf-life.

 

In an effort to improve the handling of peppers in the Arava area, Israel’s largest pepper-growing region, and in order to streamline the process from the moment of harvesting, Agexco has recently opened its new 2400 sq.m Arava Terminal in ’Ayin Yehav.  Rani Friedlander, of Moshav Beit Yitzhak, Director of the Vegetable Export Division, says the terminal is a frontline station for the company.  Regional growers pack the peppers themselves and bring the produce to the new terminal which is equipped with state-of-the-art refrigeration facilities, capable of bringing the produce to a temperature of 7-8 °C within a relatively short time, and keeping the refrigeration chain constant until the products reach their destination markets.  The terminal is designed to carry out deliveries direct to the company’s European customers.

 

Before the terminal went operational, produce was transported via regional transit to Carmel-Kor at the Ashdod terminal, and from there to the company’s ships.  "Operation of the Arava Terminal will reduce the number of in-between connections on the product’s journey to its destination, improving the quality of the refrigeration chain", explains Friedlander.

 

Answering the question of why Agrexco chose the Arava region for its new terminal, Friedlander explains that the Arava is Israel’s pepper-growing centre, accounting for 70-80% of total production.  The region also benefits from a favorable macro-climate; minimal rainfall and differential day-night temperatures –ideal conditions for pepper cultivation.

 

Some figures: Agrexco is Israel’s largest exporter of agricultural produce. In the Vegetable Division, it exports around 40,000 tons of peppers, 20,000 tons of tomato varieties, 1,500 tons of strawberries, 8,000 tons of melons and 7,000 tons of different herbs. Incidentally, Israel is one of the world’s major herbs exporters.  The Vegetable Division’s exports include: peppers, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, herbs, melons, celery, strawberries and organic produce.  The main source of competition for Israeli-grown produce comes from Spain, Morocco, Italy, Sicily, Egypt and Turkey. Israeli exports are estimated at around €200m per annum.

The ability to successfully market vegetables to Europe is closely related to how difficult it is for the importing country to produce those vegetables.  For example, Southern France is a vegetable producer.  France shares a border with Spain, a prolific vegetable producer, and a country whose supply lines are close-by and overland.  Therefore, Spain’s ability to compete in France is much lower than its ability to compete in the UK, Dutch or German markets.

 

In recent years, Israel’s vegetable exports to Eastern Europe have seen a steady increase, with Russia becoming a key market.  These exports are estimated to account for around 10-15% of Agrexco’s international sales.

 

Rani Friedlander points out that Israeli produce sells well in European supermarket chains when importers appreciate its quality, and where product origin is not a factor.  Produce aimed at US markets travel by sea from Israel to Europe before being air-transported.  Israeli-produce arrives on US store shelves within 7-10 days, assuring they have a sufficient "shelf-life". Transporting produce to the US is more costly and competition from regional producers is tough.  The viability of Israeli exports to the US has been recently undermined by Mexican peppers, grown in greenhouses and benefiting from cheap labor and low cost over-land transport.