While the containment measures seem to give the first encouraging signs of effectiveness in the face of the Covid-19 crisis, the harvesting and processing of tomatoes is continuing in the countries of the southern hemisphere and is expected to be completed within the next few weeks.
Our tomato processing industry strives to function normally while protecting its staff and ensuring the continuity of manufacturing and deliveries despite the many difficulties and constraints.
Tomato News will continue to publish testimonies and information received from companies and professional structures around the world, in synthesis articles which will be updated as information becomes available.
April 9, 2020
COVID-19 and food safety - Questions and Answers provided by European Commission
The European Commission has published a Q&A document related to food safety and COVID-19.
The document addresses questions related to risk of infection through food, food production, food in shops, food at home and provides an overview of the Member States' recommendations.
The document is available in the following link: https://ec.europa.eu/food/sites/food/files/safety/docs/biosafety_crisis_covid19_qandas.pdf
April 8, 2020
UK: Tinned tomato suppliers start rationing retailers
Tinned tomato suppliers have begun rationing retailers as stocks run low following unprecedented demand.
Supermarkets placed customer limits on tinned tomatoes as they flew off the shelves following the coronavirus outbreak. Now suppliers are following suit with Italian stocks increasingly tight and many at risk of running out. “We’re trying to ration things so that as many customers as possible get some stock even if it’s not what they’ve ordered,” said the director at one leading supplier. “Larger customers get more stock and smaller customers get less. It’s the most logical way we can do it based on what customers usually take.”
Many supermarkets shelves remain devoid of tinned tomatoes, with 40 SKUs out of stock across the big four and Waitrose, according to Edge by Ascential data. Big brands such as Cirio and KTC are among those hit. “We are capable of supporting the standard demand. We are not capable of supporting the crazy demand,” said Diego Parlotti, deputy export director at Cirio’s owner Conserve Italia.
Despite the purchasing limits, it will be difficult for importers to find alternative sources. Italy is by far the world’s biggest exporter of tinned tomatoes, shipping 10 times more than Spain in 2019, and it supplies more than three quarters of the UK’s total stock each year, according to official customs data.
Many are therefore holding out for the end of the Italian harvest in August, when replenished stocks can start to be shipped. They hope the season will be more fruitful than previous years, which have contributed to the current strains on the market. “We started 2020 with already low stocks from two seasons of lower production than expected,” said Cristina Nanni, specialist reporter at IHS Markit. The coronavirus outbreak therefore accentuated an existing shortfall, with some smaller producers now warning they could run out of certain product lines by June, said Nanni.
Escalating logistics costs and difficulties transporting goods through Europe have already strained the resupply of Italian foods in the UK. Many goods have been forced to travel by shipping container rather than lorry, slowing the transit time from three days to a week.
New Zealand, April 8, 2020
Cedenco: in the midst of Covid crisis, the season is expected to end by mid-April
Cedenco did major restructuring of its work spaces to keep production going through the Covid-19 situation and general manager Carla McCulloch has been extremely proud of the way staff have responded. “Five days prior to the lockdown we quickly realised we would need to make changes to how we operated our site,” Ms McCulloch said.
“With the new social distancing rules we could have more than 200 people working on our site at any given time. […] We brought in portacoms for extra locker and change rooms and hired marque tents for additional break areas. […] Additional Covid-19 procedures were also put in place like changes in department shift start and finish times to minimise the number of people arriving on site at the same time."
“We staggered work breaks, amenities area changed to ensure staff maintained two-metre distancing, staff on the entry gate completed health checks of all staff entering the site and additional Personal Protective Equipment such as face masks and face shields are being put in place. In addition, we minimised the number of staff on site by encouraging all staff who could work from home to do so and were doing this before Level 4 came into effect.”
“Tomato paste processing started back up on April 3 and has seven days to run before the end of the season. […] We have had an outpouring of support from our customers in New Zealand and in Asia who are relying on us to get food ingredients to their factories — Delmaine Fine Foods, My Food Bag, Heinz Wattie's, The Pure Food Co, Walter & Wild, Frucor Suntory, Kenko, CIBUS are just some of the customers we have.”
“I have been extremely proud of all our staff who have stayed on site to continue to process and because they have taken the Covid-19 rules seriously and we feel safe in our Cedenco bubble,” Ms McCulloch said. “Staff have worked tirelessly to ensure that everyone understands and follows the new way of life. Our staff working from home have also been very supportive in making sure the wheels keep turning.”
“Tomato yields have been slightly better than average, and above average for tomato brix, which is good news for our growers”. According to the company, tomatoes should all be harvested by April 17.
USA, April 8, 2020
Kraft Heinz sees sales bump from COVID-19
In an update to investors, Kraft Heinz Co. management said it expects the company’s net sales to rise 3% and organic net sales to rise 6% during the first quarter of fiscal 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and increased demand at retail. But despite the sales bump, Kraft Heinz does not expect it to flow through to its net income from continuing operations.
“We have been developing a powerful new strategy, transforming our capabilities and making needed investments in the business for months,” Mr. Patricio said. […] But given the current, unprecedented COVID-19 challenge, we believe it is better for Kraft Heinz, our shareholders and our customers that we continue our single-minded focus on getting our products from our plants to stores and onto consumers’ tables.”
The company is scheduled to release its first-quarter earnings on April 30.
Kraft Heinz cuts output at three plants
Kraft Heinz Co said on April 3, 2020 it has moved to significantly reduce production at three plants providing restaurant supplies amid the new coronavirus outbreak, but its CEO noted the company has added shifts at others to meet demand for packaged foods like macaroni and cheese.
Speaking in a video presentation, Miguel Patricio said the affected factories, two in the United States and one in the United Kingdom, are in the food service segment and saw demand drop due to the pandemic, mainly in Europe.
Patricio, who took over as Kraft Heinz’s CEO last year, said its packaged food units are working in three shifts to meet high demand, especially for macaroni and cheese in the United States and canned beans and soups in the United Kingdom.
He also said operations in China are returning to normal now, but he feels that consumers’ behaviour has changed, as individuals are using more home deliveries.
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Source : Source: thegrocer.co.uk, gisborneherald.co.nz, foodbusinessnews.net, reuters.com
