This week we are delighted to share with you the first production of ARRA 30 (ARRA Sugar Dropâą) in Bulgaria, the successful TopFruit events in South Africa and the beautiful ARRA Sweetiesâą in Israel.Â
Located in the region of Burgas, Agronara begun harvesting ARRA 30 (ARRA Sugar Dropâą) in its first year of production and the crop looks great. The Burgas Region is one of the most developed regions in Bulgaria and it is situated in the southeastern part of the country and is the second biggest after Sofia Region.Â
Carlo Lingua, CEO of AVI Srl and exclusive territorial representative for the ARRA⹠and Early Sweet⹠varieties in Europe, visited the farm just prior to harvest and reports: «This first ARRA Sugar Drop produced in Bulgaria looks great. The berries are crunchy the eating quality is exceptional, we are positive that it will be accepted very well by the market».
Carlo adds: «In order to offer high-quality products, producers must follow the production protocols set out by breeders and this will secure a great crop as we have seen at Agronara on their first production season».
We are very happy to have Bulgaria added to the list of ARRA-producing countries.
Carlo Lingua, CEO of AVI Srl and exclusive territorial representative for the ARRA⹠and Early Sweet⹠varieties in Europe, visited the farm just prior to harvest and reports: «This first ARRA Sugar Drop produced in Bulgaria looks great. The berries are crunchy the eating quality is exceptional, we are positive that it will be accepted very well by the market».
TopFruit Virtual information day
On the 19th of August 2021, TopFruit held its first virtual information day showcasing some of its most promising new fruit varieties. The very appropriate title of this first virtual information day was «Discovering and Unlocking Potential with TopFruit» with a focus on innovation. TopFruit, during the table grape session, emphasized the great advantages of the 4 leading, most popular varieties in South Africa: ARRA Passion Fireâą, ARRA Honey Popâą, ARRA Sugar DropâąÂ and ARRA Sweetiesâą by highlighting the prominent attributes such as rain resistance, fertility and labor-friendly.
One of the most promising varieties that will be soon planted on a very large scale in South Africa is the very early white ARRA Honey Popâą. As Arnold Viljoen, Viticulture Specialist at TopFruit proclaims in the video below: «From the trials and cold storage, it is just one of those fantastic varieties that tend to have no work to be done. It is unbelievably good». Â
TopFruit Table Grape Unit Exporter Webinar
In addition to the virtual information day, TopFruit on the 26th of August hosted a webinar specifically for all ARRAâą exporters.
AJ Jansen van Vuuren, Table Grape Manager at TopFruit reports about the day: «We are very pleased with the outcome of this first webinar for our authorized exporters. The audience was really interactive and we received good interest and numerous questions.»
AJ adds: «This gave us the opportunity to communicate with all exporters in a more direct and personable manner. In the future, we hope to focus much more on our exporters as they play just as an important role in our industry as our growers».
AJ adds: «We also highlighted the special ARRA Varieties attributes such as rain resistance, earliness, fertility and labor-friendly, all very important factors that distinguish the ARRA breeding program».
Well done to the TopFruit Team for the success of both events and thank you for the continuous dedication and commitment during all this years to the ARRA Program across South Africa and Namibia!Â
After the successful Early ARRA Virtual Field Day webinars held in July, we followed with our Mid-Late and Late ARRA Virtual Field Day webinars, in August.Â
During the webinar sessions that were held in English, Spanish and Portuguese, the attendees showed great interest in the upcoming varieties. There is no doubt that the star of the Mid and Late ARRA Virtual Field Day was the striking ARRA 94B-35+4 this selection appeared to be everyone’s favorite. In this edition, we will take a closer look at this appealing red newcomer.
ARRA 94B-35+4 is a truly eye-catching variety, with a shiny, deep cherry red color. It has a high yield and easy growing practices, with a great sugar-acid balance. Sweet and crunchy with large elongated berries this selection has an outstanding storage ability and is rain resistant as our team in Brazil reports in the below video.
The below image showcases all the varieties presented in both of our ARRA Virtual Field Days. From early to late, the ARRA Breeding program is always evolving and focusing on creating table grapes to satisfy both the producer and the consumer.
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