Belgian Conference pears sweeten Chinese palates

Belgian Conference pears should be popping up on supermarket shelves in China over the next few weeks, paving the way for more imports of fresh goods from Europe.

Apart from pears, Belgium is also keen to export products like bees, horses and pork to China.

"We plan to export seven products to China and I hope the process will begin this year," says Michel Gerebtzoff, first secretary of the embassy of Belgium.

The green light for Conference pears came after protracted negotiations between Belgium and China for over three and a half years.

Each Belgian pear is expected to cost around 3.5 yuan (0.39 euros) to 4 yuan, more than double the rate of domestic pears.

The pears will initially be sold through high-end supermarkets like Carrefour and Walmart, says Wang Youquan, sales manager of Beijing Dole Food Co Ltd, the sales agency for Belgische Fruitveiling (BFV), which brings in the fruit.

Wang says the pears will be sold through local wholesale markets, such as the Xinfadi market, the largest wholesale fruit and vegetable market in Beijing, at a later stage.

"Consumers always prefer to buy fruit from wholesale markets as they are cheaper and fresher. Besides, wholesale markets can distribute the Conference pears to smaller supermarkets and thus expand coverage."

When it comes to the trade deficit of Europe in terms of fruit, there is a huge gap between the export of fresh fruits from Europe to China and the export from China to Europe, says Marc Evrard, market development manager with BFV.

"Exports of Chinese fresh fruits to Europe has been increasing in the past few years, while European fruit exports to China have been stagnant," says Evrard.

BFV considers China a huge potential market after it got good reactions to the Conference pear tasting sessions in Beijing and Shanghai.

"The 10-month availability of the Conference pear will prove to be an attraction for consumers. It is also an excellent complement to the existing range of local products," Evrard says.

According to Belgium Unlimited China, the website of the Belgian embassy in Beijing, Chinese people eat 15 billion kilograms of pears a year, leaving plenty of room in the juicy market for a new product.

The first batch of the pears - weighing more than 17,000 kg - reached Shanghai on Jan 24 and will be put on store shelves after Spring Festival.

The company will promote the pears initially in major cities, like Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, before taking them to the second- and third-tier cities.

Evrard says the Conference pear can withstand the arduous rigors of shipping and is an ideal export product.

BFV and the Chinese General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine reached a groundbreaking consensus on the export of pears to China in May last year.