W23: Plum & Prune Update

In W23 in the plum and prune landscape, after two unproductive years, when French plum production had been halved due to spring frost, French plums will once again be plentiful in the markets. The spring of 2023, was almost spared by frost, and the heavy stormy rains of the last few weeks made it possible to bridge the drought. The National Association of Plum Producers (AOPn) expects 2023 French plum production to reach 60 thousand mt, almost normal provided favorable weather conditions. The first varieties of French plums are expected to arrive at the end of June, while the Reine-Claude will arrive a month later, followed by the Mirabelle plum and the Plum plum in mid-August. On the price side, it is difficult to determine currently because it is so early in the season. Experts are certain that plum prices will not be on the same level as pre-COVID prices, taking into account the increase in production costs.

On June 10th, the first plums from Son La province in Vietnam were loaded onto Vietnam Airlines flights to serve meals to tourists. This is the second fruit product of Son La to be put on flights after Longan fruit in Aug-2022. The airlines continue to open up new opportunities in the consumption of the fruit, one of the main agricultural products of this locality. In the main season, farm-gate plum prices stand at USD 0.64-1.06/kg, while early ripe plums trade at USD 2.12-4.25/kg. Thus, many plum growers in the area have an average income of USD 8.5-13 thousand/ha. Post-Yen Chau plums have a rich sweet and sour taste, and crunchy, and cracked seeds, which are appealing to consumers. Previously, Yen Chau plums mainly served the domestic market. However, over the past 4 years, plums in the districts of Yen Chau, and Son La province, in general, have been exported to markets around the world.

Lastly, the first month of spring turned out to be successful for Uzbek prune producers. Thus, in Mar-2023, Uzbek prune exports reached a record 4.6 thousand mt, twice as much as Feb-2023, and almost 3 times higher YoY. Uzbek prune shipments were mainly destined for China, importing almost 50% of the total supply. Also, Uzbekistan exports dried prune fruits to 25 countries. Experts indicate that another contract was signed for the supply of the first batch of Uzbek prunes to the UK.