Kenya-grown fresh avocado fruits sourced from listed agribusiness firm Kakuzi Plc hit the largest fresh fruit wholesale market in East China this morning.
The premium fruits which arrived in Shanghai, China, Sunday evening were stocked at the Shanghai Huizhan Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market just a day after the inaugural consignment’s phytosanitary and customs clearance.
With the stocking in a Chinese retail outlet, Kakuzi has completed the import voyage that commenced last week for the inaugural export consignment and has become the first African firm to officially undertake commercial sales of Avocados on Chinese soil.
Speaking when he confirmed the market diversification milestone, Kakuzi Plc Managing Director Chris Flowers said the firm’s marketing agents in China-Halls Fresh Produce- had acknowledged the early morning stocking of the Hass Avocado fruits after the mandatory quarantine period.
The stocking follows a stringent phytosanitary check by the Chinese National Plant Protection Organisation (NPPO) at the Shanghai International Airport and customs clearance by the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC) yesterday.
Fresh from the successful delivery of the inaugural consignment, a second consignment Mr Flowers confirmed will be picked and prepared for export to China.
“Discerning Chinese consumers have woken up to the market availability of the freshest Kakuzi Hass Avocado. This development officially marks the entry of Kenya as an exporter of quality avocado fruits to China and completes the export loop that commenced last Thursday,” Flowers said. He disclosed, “This is a true tree-to-shelf story as the fruits were handpicked at our Murang’a County orchards and packed for export last Thursday. They were airlifted to China on Saturday, cleared for sale on Tuesday afternoon and stocked in a wholesale market Thursday morning.”
According to Mr Lifan Yu of Halls Fresh Produce, the market agent for Kakuzi in China, the inaugural shipment will enhance bilateral trade and social relations between the Chinese and Kenyan people.
“The Chinese community has been a true friend to the people of Kenya, and this inaugural shipment of fresh avocado fruits will cement these relations. Kakuzi is a quality grower of horticultural produce, livestock and forestry products for the Kenyan and export markets. Lifan said that the Halls and Kakuzi collaboration will help deepen the Chinese Avocado market. He added, “At Halls Fresh Produce China, we have been promoting ready-to-eat avocados for several years. Chinese consumers are now more familiar with our quality and premium products as quality, sustainability, and traceability are at the heart of what we do.”
The import of fresh Avocado superfood to China from Kenya follows the early January (2022) signing of two commercial protocols to facilitate bilateral trade, mainly the export of avocados and aquatic products from Kenya to China. Kenya’s Ministry of Agriculture Cabinet Secretary, Hon. Peter Munya and the Chinese Ambassador to Kenya, Mr Zhou Pingjian, signed the protocols in the Indian Ocean island city of Mombasa, Kenya.
Since January this year, Kakuzi PLC has been undertaking the necessary preparatory frameworks ahead of its China market entry. The firm has undergone essential audits by the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS) and NPPO, who have approved fifteen (15) orchards, nine (9) packhouses and one (1) fumigation facility, including Kakuzi’s orchards and packhouses to export fresh avocado to China. Following the stringent audits, the GACC recently published a list of Orchards, Packing Houses and the fumigation facility authorized to export fruit to China.