In Greece, the apricot harvest has begun, whilst the peach harvest is just around the corner. This allows for initial assessments to be made of harvest volumes and price trends.
Our partner is expecting a good harvest for both types of fruit. The current forecast for peaches is around 400,000 tonnes, which would represent an increase of over 30 per cent compared with 2025. Despite the higher availability, prices for the raw produce remain high. Lower prices would jeopardise the economic viability of peach cultivation and could lead producers to switch to alternative crops such as cotton or tobacco. Furthermore, the comparatively high proportion of smaller fruits makes the production of tinned fruit more difficult, and there are hardly any stocks available from the previous season. Against this backdrop, our partner in the tinned peach sector currently expects price increases averaging 5 to 7 per cent. However, greater variations are possible, as pricing already varied significantly between manufacturers last year. More specific information is expected in early July once packing begins.
Production of apricots began on 12 June with a trial run. Regular processing has been underway since 15 June. Reliable raw material prices are not currently available, but are expected over the next few days. According to our expert’s assessment, prices are expected to rise as the season progresses. A key reason for this is the high demand from the frozen food industry.
Several factors are currently driving up prices for both apricots and peaches from Greece. These include increased energy costs resulting from the war between Iran and Israel, as well as higher labour costs. The latter are necessary to attract sufficient workers to work in production facilities in high temperatures.
In China, the apricot harvest has been complete since the end of May. The harvest volume is around 30 per cent below last year’s level. At the same time, raw material prices have risen by around 30 per cent compared with 2025. It is not currently possible to reliably predict how prices for tinned goods will develop. This is due to high demand from the frozen food industry, which is competing with tinned food manufacturers for the available raw materials. Local experts therefore estimate that the production of tinned apricots will be only about half the volume of the previous year.
