In this week’s Newsletter, we are delighted to share with you the early ARRA Varieties grown in greenhouses in the Jordan Valley of Israel. Growing the varieties in a greenhouse helps ripen the grapes even earlier. In addition, we bring you news fresh off the press from the ARRA Breeding site in California.
This year we had the opportunity to see ARRA 79B-44+1 in all its glory in California, Chile, Peru and Brazil. This early-mid selection stands out mainly due to its beautiful, intense ruby red color achieved without any color agent. The strong red color doesn’t become darker as the fruit matures like in the case of Flame seedless, for example. Crunchiness, shelf life, eating quality and constant yield are other characteristics that make this variety a winner.
Karl Conrads, Grapasa CEO and ARRA Agent in South America is confident that soon, this selection, will be planted commercially in both Chile and Peru. Karl says: “ARRA 79B-44 + 1 has scored 100 out of 100 in all its evaluation steps. It is a variety with a very attractive red color, crunchy 24 mm caliber berries and early harvest, ripening soon after ARRA Passion Fire™ (ARRA 29)”.
Karl continues: “ARRA 79B-44+1 is considered one of the best red varieties developed so far by the ARRA program. Producers in Chile are already reserving plants in the nursery for the planned commercialization of this variety in the next few years”.
ARRA 93B-35+7 is an excellent mid-season variety with a great sugar/acid balance and a delicate Muscat flavor for which it is most loved.
Randy Giumarra, VP Sales at Giumarra Vineyards Corporation says: “This variety is beautiful and although we did not have any commercial production yet, the many trials we ran, only showed positive results, especially in relation to the prolonged shelf life this variety can endure. Moreover, we observed no signs of discoloration after being in cold storage for an extended period of time, something very unique for this category grape”. Randy concludes: “I think this will be a big hit!”.
Watch Uzi Yaron, Grapa R&D Director, showcasing ARRA 93B-35+7 in the field in Bakersfield, California.
2021 was the year we licensed the 30th country to grow the ARRA™ varieties. This was also the year of the first production of ARRA Honey Pop™ vines, continuing to be a real showstopper, attracting substantial interest from producers around the globe
Moreover, the launch of the new generation of ARRA varieties has been successful and profitable for the growers. The ARRA Breeding program introduced promising very early, mid and late varieties featuring the advantageous rain tolerance quality, allowing for cultivation under various weather conditions.
We made a great effort to travel every possible opportunity in order to meet with ARRA growers and partners to provide our in-person support and guidance. The Grapa Team was pleased to attend Fruit Attraction Madrid, the successful Brazil ARRA Field Days as well as farm visits in various countries that were, at some point, open to travel.
Although we very much looked forward to meeting you all in person at the ARRA Field Days in California, we were forced, once again, to hold the event virtually.
It is never easy to present a physical experience such as tasting and feeling through a screen, but Shachar and Uzi put their efforts together to capture and bring us the best of this year’s ARRA variety selections. The webinars held in July and August showcased the early to mid and late ARRA varieties, divided into different sessions according to the attendees’ language: English, Spanish and Portuguese.
This year, we were lucky enough to have the representatives from the Brazilian and Chilean teams join us in California to evaluate the new promising varieties as well as participate in the ARRA Field Days footage.
Typically, the Grapa team, meets not only with licensed producers but also with marketers who, especially during exhibitions, are given the opportunity to taste the varieties as well as learn all about them directly from the breeder himself.
Due to travel restrictions and the postponement or cancelations of exhibitions, Grapa broadcasted 3 live webinar sessions exclusively for traders and retailers. These focused on the most established varieties from the ARRA Breeding Program: ARRA Passion Fire™, ARRA Sweeties™ and ARRA Mystic Dream™.
The webinars presented the different varieties’ characteristics, highlighting the optimal conditions required in their exportation, importation and sale. In each webinar, Shachar Karniel, ARRA Varieties Breeder and Nomi Karniel Padan, Grapa Commercial Director, welcomed special guests who joined the sessions to share their experiences with the varieties in their own countries.
This year, Early & Mid variety samples were shipped to major fresh produce retailers around the world with the collaboration of our agents/country representatives. Each destination had its own parameters in order to evaluate the varieties. After analysis of the data by the Grapa team, it was evident that the early-mid red ARRA 79B-44+1 and the mid white ARRA 93B-35+7 were consistently the favorites.
Our success is thanks to our great partners and licensees whose hard work and commitment prevailed throughout this past year. Our combined strength has brought us to where we are today.
Thank you all for sharing these beautiful pictures of your grapes and teams throughout the year.
The Grapa Team wishes you and your families a joyous, peaceful and festive season and all the best for the 2022 New Year.
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