Agrofresh will be the key sponsors of Prognosfruit

Prognosfruit Conference sponsored by AGROFRESH, Europe’s leading annual event for the apple and pear sector, is taking place in a few days  with an outstanding programme. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Prognosfruit 2021 will again take place as an  online event. The event will take place on 5 August 2021 in the morning with an attractive programme for delegates to find out the key factors that will shape the upcoming season with insightful views from industry leaders from  Europe and around the world. Registrations are closing soon, and stakeholders and journalists are welcome to  register via the Prognosfruit website.  The 46th edition of Prognosfruit will take place on 5 August in the morning (CEST) and will explore the upcoming  apples and pears crop for the European Union and its immediate neighbourhood. Climatic conditions will once again  be one of the key influencers of the 2021/2022 production outlook. To find out more about the season’s outlook, an  attractive programme has been designed by the organizer for this year’s Prognosfruit Conference.   As part of the programme Philippe Binard, WAPA Secretary General, will set the scene for the upcoming apples and  pears crop, while Helwig Schwartau, Market Analyst at AMI, will share a market outlook based on the crop forecast.  Franz Ennser, CEO of Austria Juice, will provide the latest processing trends and Fritz Prem, Europäisches Biobst-Forum  President, will review the latest organic production developments, an important aspect considering the European  Union’s ambitions to significantly boost production and consumption of organic products as part of the European  Green Deal and Farm to Fork Strategy.  Mr Binard stated that, “This year Prognosfruit will also have strong international connotations with review of other  Northern Hemisphere developments. Experts from the USA, China, Russia and India will share their perspectives on the outlook and trends for the upcoming apples and pears crops in these other key Northern Hemisphere production  regions”. Beside and as it was the case in previous Prognosfruit editions, an in-depth exchange of views in panels will  take place with key representatives of the EU leading producing countries to learn more about the production  specifics across Europe. The panel will also include a representative from the Southern Hemisphere for a broader  perspective of the market switch between the Southern and Northern Hemisphere seasons.   Commenting on the 46th edition of Prognosfruit Dominik Wozniak, President of WAPA, stated, “We are increasingly  producing and trading under an unpredictable climatic and market environment. Nowadays, late spring frosts, hail,  drought, flood, evolving plant health conditions due to climate change as well as factors such as COVID-19 , market access uncertainties or Brexit are significantly influencing our day-to-day production and trading activities.  Prognosfruit is the place to learn more from colleagues about how these factors will influence the next apples and  pears season. Picking is expected to start this year a bit later than normal conditions. First estimations indicate more  production than the previous two years, but we are all looking forward to hearing the consolidated Prognosfruit estimate for a better assessement”. Luc Vanoirbeek, Chairman of COPA COGECA Fruit and Vegetables Working Group, concluded, “I am pleased that  despite the constraints of the sanitary conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impossibility to meet in person,  Prognosfruit remains the lead annual conference on the agenda for the apples and pears sector.” This year marks the  46th edition of Prognofruit, an event with a long tradition of being a very professional and productive gathering for the  apples and pears community. Mr Vanoirbeek added, “I am pleased that again this year we have a large attendance for this virtual format, but we are all looking forward to meeting again physically next year in Serbia if the sanitary situation allows”.