BLOOM FRESH™ International, a premium fruit-breeding company specializing in table grapes, cherries and raisins, held its first Open Day in India as a new company. The event drew nearly 50 licensed growers and nurseries as well as executives and commercial managers from the company's team. The Open Day was hosted by Sahyadri Farms, India's largest fruit and vegetable value chain, where BLOOM has several commercial fields for five of its popular table grape varietals.
India is one of the top producers of table grapes and an exporter to the Netherlands, the U.K., Germany and the Middle East, among others. BLOOM has opened new opportunities to supply both domestic and international markets, with currently 80 hectares of its table grapes planted in India.
The Open Day included a tasting of the breeder's table grape varietals.
Additionally, India has enabled BLOOM to fulfill a harvest window between April and June and supply table grape varieties during a period that has traditionally been a challenge in the past in Europe.
"There is a big demand in India to replace the older legacy varieties with new tasty and crunchy table grapes, which are in high demand from all the major global retailers," said Karen Smit-Lotriet, commercial lead, BLOOM in India. "Approximately 90 percent of plantings in India are white seedless varieties, which enables us to offer a myriad of flavors, colors and tasting sensations."
The Open Day included a tasting of BLOOM FRESH table grape varietals including Ivory™, Timpson™, Allison™ and Timco™ as well as tours of the Sahyadri vineyards. Afterward, attendees listened to lectures focusing on innovations in table grape breeding, growing and licensing techniques.
The event drew nearly 50 licensed growers and nurseries as well as executives and commercial managers from the company's team.
Paresh Bhayani, director of grape exporter Panacea Energizers, has started testing plantations of five new varieties from BLOOM, including Allison™ and Timco™. "What I have understood after 20 years in the industry is that market demand for new varieties is growing. In India, awareness of this demand has increased, and more farmers are interested in them," he said in a recent interview.
A key aspect in the breeding program is how grower-friendly the new varieties are as growers in India and worldwide require highly productive and easy-to-grow cultivars to help them optimize costs and remain profitable.
"These varieties have shown excellent potential in trial blocks in India. Our growers attended the India Open Day to learn more about how to grow these varieties in India's subtropical conditions. We have done our first commercial plantation and are waiting for the first crop. PC Foods along with our large group of grape growers and agronomists is committed to making this a success," said attendee, Preetam Chandratreya, CEO of PC Foods Private Limited.
For more information:
Marie-Anne de Béjarry
BLOOM FRESH
Tel: +34 682 044 229
[email protected]
https://bloomfreshglobal.com