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Export markets
Kenyan Hass avocado and avocado oil exporter to Italy
Italy buys avocados twelve months a year and has become one of Europe's most important refining and bottling centres for avocado oil. We serve both sides of that market: Class 1 Hass and Green skin avocados for importers, ripeners and wholesale markets in Milan, Verona, Fondi, Bologna and Naples, and crude, extra virgin and refined avocado oil in flexitanks, drums and IBCs for Italian oil refiners, blenders and private label bottlers.
Buyers
Built for Italian importers, ripeners and oil refiners
Italian fresh produce importers want fruit that ripens evenly for the wholesale markets and for supermarket programmes, with full documentation and a price that holds for the week. Italian oil companies want crude avocado oil with low free fatty acid, a certificate of analysis per batch and a supplier who understands refining, deodorising and bottling. Our own 200 hectare plantation, partner orchards in our grower register and our avocado oil processing give us control of both, and SAFTA, Fruit Trade Assistance, our partner Sales Execution Office in Antwerp, Belgium, supports fixed price programmes and in port assistance in Europe.
Products
What we ship to Italy
Market access
Market access and compliance for Italy
Logistics
Logistics from Kenya to Italy
Season calendar
When each product is available for Italy
Kenyan Hass peaks from April to August and Tanzanian Hass from November to March, so Hass is available in most months from our East African origins, with lean periods between the Kenyan and Tanzanian seasons; pineapple, passion fruit, herbs and all value added products ship all year.
| Product | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hass avocado (Kenya) | ||||||||||||
| Hass avocado (Tanzania) | ||||||||||||
| Green skin (Fuerte, Pinkerton) | ||||||||||||
| Apple mango | ||||||||||||
| MD2 pineapple | ||||||||||||
| Passion fruit | ||||||||||||
| Fresh herbs and chillies | ||||||||||||
| Avocado oil, dried, frozen, macadamia, purees |
Consultancy
Consultancy for trading with Italy
For exporters
Preparation for Italian importer audits, residue compliance plans, oil specification and COA set up for refinery customers, programme pricing and introductions from our European buyer database.
For importers
Origin audits and supplier development in Kenya and East Africa, multi origin programmes to fill the Kenyan off season, independent preloading QC on every consignment.
Trade fairs and visits
We meet Italian buyers at Fruit Logistica Berlin, Fruit Attraction Madrid and Macfrut Rimini, visit refineries and bottlers in Italy, and host Italian buyers at our orchards and processing operations in Kenya.
Questions buyers ask
Before you request an offer for Italy
Can you supply crude avocado oil to an Italian refinery on a yearly contract?
Yes. We supply crude avocado oil in flexitanks or drums against annual or multi year offtake, with a batch certificate of analysis for free fatty acid, peroxide value, moisture and impurities, and we agree the specification with your refinery before the first lot.
What free fatty acid level does your crude oil ship at?
Crude avocado oil is sold against an agreed FFA band and a certificate of analysis per batch. Typical specifications and how refiners use them are set out on our avocado oil page and in our crude avocado oil guide, and we confirm the band for each offer.
Do you deliver avocados to the Milan and Verona wholesale markets?
Fruit is shipped green and hard to Genoa or Vado Ligure for your ripening and distribution to the wholesale markets; through SAFTA we can arrange DAP delivery to ripening centres in northern Italy.
Is avocado oil from Kenya duty free in Italy?
Yes. Under the Kenya and EU Economic Partnership Agreement avocado oil and fresh avocados of Kenyan origin enter Italy duty free and quota free with a EUR.1 movement certificate.
How do we see the quality before the container sails?
Fruit Quality Studio Africa, the Kenyan arm of Quality Studio Europe, inspects every consignment at the packhouse and issues a preloading QC report on dry matter, defects, sizing and pulp temperature, which we share with you before the vessel departs.
Can you start with a trial order?
Yes. Most programmes for Italy begin with one container to Genoa, or a pallet by air for herbs, chillies and samples, before moving to fortnightly or weekly programme volumes.
Other markets
More export markets we serve
Products
Our full export range
Our partners
Independent quality control and transparent trade, built into every shipment
Two partners work alongside our own team on every export programme, so buyers see the fruit before it sails and know the price before they commit.
Fruit Quality Studio Africa
Independent avocado quality control, the Kenyan arm of Quality Studio Europe. Every consignment is inspected at the packhouse before loading, with a preloading QC report on dry matter, defects, sizing and pulp temperature shared with the buyer, and arrival inspection in Europe on request or as agreed per programme.
qualitystudio.eu →
SAFTA, Fruit Trade Assistance: Sales Execution Office, Antwerp
Our partner Sales Execution Office in Antwerp, Belgium. SAFTA is not a buyer of our fruit: it sells Konza Tropicals avocados on our behalf to retailers, importers and ripeners across Europe and executes each programme from offer to payment, with fixed and transparent pricing, programme contracts, cold chain from packhouse to destination and SAFTA Rescue support for shipments in European ports, so growers and importers both know where they stand.
fruittradeassistance.com →Contact
Let us talk fruit
We work from Kenya with partner orchards and exporters in Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi, and we answer email during East African, European and Gulf business hours.