Who's eating seedless grapes?

Grapes are increasing in popularity in the fresh produce industry. In recent years changes have occurred in all aspects of the grape value chain, from production quality and increased availability from sourcing countries to innovation in packaging and development of new varieties.

Overall, world grape consumption has been increasing, with higher levels being reported in European markets such as Italy, UK, Netherlands and Germany. With a population of 1.3 billion people, China remains the leading consumer of fresh grapes by far. In Italy, Egypt, Turkey and Spain, much of this trend is due to the fact that these countries consume a high proportion of their own fresh grape production.

A key trend is consumer demand for seedless grapes, particularly in the UK, US, Canada and Europe. Popular varieties include Thompson white seedless, Crimson red seedless, Perlette seedless, Flame seedless and Sugraone seedless. Attempts to offer "consumer friendly" grapes have also been successful, such as new packaging concepts. Packaging styles range from bags with zip locks to punnets for protection, or smaller packaging and pouches. Grapes are also seen as a convenient fruit, a quick hassle-free healthy snack option. In the UK, grapes are more likely to be consumed at lunchtime as an in-home snack– home snacking alone accounts for 23 per cent of grape consumption.

In some countries, grape exports comprise the bulk of fresh fruit exports. Chilean grapes account for more than 33 per cent of the country’s fruit exports. High export levels have undoubtedly led to increased investment in R&D and technology in producing new varieties, not only in Chile but also across all markets.

Kg per capita

1999 2001 2003

Americas

US 8.2 8.2 9.1

Mexico 2.1 2.3 2.1

Brazil 2.5 3 3.4

Argentina 1.1 1 1.4

Canada 9.5 9.8 10.1

Europe

France 2 5.3 3.9

UK 10.2 9.9 10.1

Germany 8 8 8

Italy 15.8 14.9 7.8

Spain 10.7 4.7 7.3

Netherlands 11.5 11.6 11.2

Belgium 5.8* 3.6 3.7

Turkey 26 21.9 27.8

Africa

Egypt 13.7 14.5 14

South Africa 5.2 2 2.2

Asia Pacific

Australia 10.1 9.5 11.7

Japan 2.5 1.8 2.3

China 1.2 2.2 2.4

India 1 0.9 0.9

*Figure for Belgium-Luxembourg

Source: Promar International from trade sources