Last week saw the annual Fruit Logistica fair in Berlin – probably the largest produce trade event of its type in the world, with some 75,000 people typically attending each year, including trade visitors, buyers and representatives from the fresh produce industry across the globe, with over 3,000 exhibitors located in some 27 massive halls.
It’s quite an event and you need to be ready for a lot of walking over the 3 days to get the best out of it!
This week is a time to reflect on what we saw and heard from our clients, potential clients, colleagues and friends who were there too. So, what was the overall “vibe” from Berlin, from our point of view?
Several themes seemed to resonate with us in particular:
- The impact of a new President in the U.S. – No one seems quite sure what will happen as a result of this and what policies will be introduced that will impact on the US and international produce sector, although several things seem clear: the future geopolitical relationship between the US and China is going to be crucial. The nature of this will see impacts ricochet around the rest of the world, not least in Southeast Asia, which is seen as a key future market for many suppliers in Latin America, Africa and Europe, beyond the U.S. itself. A tariff war is not seen as being helpful to anyone. And U.S. tariffs on imports, most likely on Mexico, could also cause further supply chain disruption, although ironically, might also open the door to the lucrative U.S. market to others. And being UK-based, we were interested in particular, to hear that there might be renewed interest in doing trade between the U.S. and the UK too, depending on how potential trade deals in the future develop. The overall consensus seemed to be however, to “expect the unexpected” from the Trump administration and be ready as possible for this.
- Having excellent fruit is probably not enough on its own – All of the leading international producers and exporters, such as the U.S., China, Turkey, Brazil, India, Mexico, Chile, Peru, South Africa, Colombia, the Netherlands, Spain and Thailand have excellent fruit to trade. The “best of the best” in these countries already operate to a high technical standard. Competitors to them need to be able to match them across a wide range of supply chain factors, and when at their best, often can. Besides, however, having great produce to sell, it also now requires a very high level of market understanding, as well as the development of a clear, yet flexible business strategy. This needs to consider economics, customers and supply chains, as well as other important factors, such as climate change and the environment too. It will be those countries and businesses, including those in the US, that have great data and market insight (besides having great produce too) who will be the mid to long term winners
- The global produce world is still uncertain – World demand and trade in produce, over the last few years, has been hit hard by a series of interrelated factors. This has required all producers and exporters, including those in the U.S. to have something of a rethink as to where they see their key markets and customers being in the future. Much of this has been driven by the ongoing aftereffects of the COVID pandemic, disruption to the operation of physical supply chains, the impact of climate patterns and changes to consumer behaviour.
But to some extent, the international fruit sector has always had these sorts of so-called supply chain “shocks”. Going back in time, we had to endure the Global Financial Crisis. There has been issues with transport logistics, especially in the Suez and Panama Canals, consumer and political opposition to the adoption of new agri food technology, especially in Europe, but maybe less so in other parts of the world. The situation in the Middle East still remains tense.
In this environment, supply chain shocks should not be seen as shocks anymore – there will be more on the way in the future – we just don’t know what they will be or when they will arise. Regardless, produce businesses around the world need to develop a strong sense of self-resilience to deal with them, when they do.
So that’s it, for this year then, for Fruit Logistica: 3 days, over 30 meetings and many, many “steps”! 2025 looks to be a year ahead full of change, bringing both challenges and opportunities for produce suppliers around the world. From the work we are involved with at Promar, this seems to have always been the case. 2025 will be no exception: expect the unexpected and supply chain shocks shouldn’t be shocks anymore. Get ready for this – and be resilient – seems to be the mantra.
