Global network
Global Fruit Sourcing: Nine Origins, One Standard
PR Agrifresh sources fruit from nine countries and lands it in India through Nhava Sheva and Delhi. Each origin is chosen for a specific fruit in a specific window, not for the lowest quote of the week. This page sets out what each country supplies, when it ships and why it sits in the programme.
PR Agrifresh operating context.
Global network
How we choose an origin
International fruit sourcing for India is really a calendar problem. India's own seasons cover a few months a year; the rest has to come from somewhere the sun is doing the opposite thing. So the first question is never price — it is which hemisphere is harvesting in the week the fruit needs to be on shelf.
After that, four things decide whether an origin stays in the programme: the packhouse's ability to hold grade at volume, the reliability of its cold-chain handover, sailing time and schedule stability to Indian ports, and whether the grower will commit to a programme rather than sell to whoever calls first. A fresh produce sourcing company that gets those four right can quote a buyer a price in February that still holds in May.
South Africa
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
Chile
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
China
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
New Zealand
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
Italy
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
Poland
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
Egypt
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
Turkey
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
Vietnam
Part of the PR Agrifresh sourcing network
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The nine origins and what they supply
| Origin | Fruit supplied | Why this origin |
|---|---|---|
| South Africa | Mandarins, oranges, grapefruit, pears, plums, avocados, apples, cherries | The broadest citrus and stone-fruit base in the southern hemisphere, harvesting straight through India's off-season |
| Chile | Cherries, plums, kiwis | The world's benchmark cherry origin, landing in India's winter gifting window |
| China | Grapes, mandarins | The long mandarin window from December to July, plus large-volume table grape and pear supply with short sailing times to Indian ports |
| New Zealand | Kiwifruit, apples, avocados | Rigorous grading standards and a counter-season apple and kiwi harvest |
| Italy | Apples, kiwifruit | Northern-hemisphere apple and kiwi supply with strong controlled-atmosphere storage capability |
| Poland | Apples | High-volume, competitively priced apple origin for the northern-hemisphere window |
| Egypt | Oranges, wet dates | Short transit to India, strong citrus programmes and the origin for Barhi-type wet dates |
| Turkey | Cherries, grapefruit | Northern-hemisphere cherry supply plus quality citrus in the early season |
| Vietnam | Dragon fruit, grapes | Year-round dragon fruit production and the shortest sailing time in the network |
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Fruit import from South Africa to India
South Africa is the largest single origin in our programme. Citrus dominates — mandarins, oranges and grapefruit through the middle of the calendar year — alongside pears, plums and avocados. The country's citrus export industry is built around fixed weekly shipping programmes, which is exactly what a distributor needs when they are planning a shelf twelve weeks ahead. Nadorcott mandarins from South Africa, including branded programmes, are the reference standard for premium citrus in the Indian market.
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Fruit import from Chile to India
Chile supplies the two shortest and most valuable seasons in our range: cherries and plums. Chilean cherries arrive in India between November and February, peaking across December and January — which is precisely when the Indian gifting and wedding calendar is at its heaviest. The window is unforgiving. Fruit is committed at origin weeks before it is picked, and a delayed sailing does not just cost margin, it costs the season.
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Fruit import from Vietnam to India
Vietnam has the shortest transit of any origin in the network and produces dragon fruit across multiple cycles a year, in both red and white flesh. That combination — short sailing time and near-continuous production — makes it the one origin where supply can be adjusted close to the date rather than locked months ahead. Vietnamese grapes also feature in the second half of the year.
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The other six origins
China supplies mandarins from December to July, alongside table grapes and pears with a fast sailing to Nhava Sheva. New Zealand contributes kiwifruit, apples and avocados under some of the strictest grading regimes in world trade. Italy and Poland cover the northern-hemisphere apple window, with Italy also supplying kiwifruit, while New Zealand and South Africa carry the counter-season half of the apple year. Egypt sends citrus and the wet-date programme that peaks around the festive and Ramadan months. Turkey adds early-season cherries and grapefruit.
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Which countries export the most fruit to India
By value, imported fruit into India is concentrated in a handful of categories — apples, kiwifruit, citrus, pears, grapes, dragon fruit, avocados and cherries — and the leading supplier countries mirror that. Apples arrive mainly from Italy, Poland, New Zealand, Turkey, Iran, Chile and the United States. Kiwifruit is dominated by New Zealand, Italy and Chile. Citrus comes largely from South Africa, Egypt and Australia. Dragon fruit is overwhelmingly Vietnamese and Thai. Cherries are Chilean, Turkish and American.
Our nine imported fruit origin countries sit inside that picture deliberately. We do not chase every origin available — we hold direct relationships in the ones that matter for the twelve categories we actually run.
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One standard across every origin
The specification does not change when the passport does. Every consignment, from every country, moves through the same six-stage discipline:
- 01
Selection at origin — variety, grade, count, colour break and maturity agreed before the season starts, not after the fruit is packed.
- 02
Grower relationships — direct, repeated, multi-season. We buy from people we can call, not from a market screen.
- 03
Quality coordination — packhouse checks against the agreed specification, with rejections raised at origin rather than absorbed on arrival.
- 04
Logistics planning — sailing schedule, transhipment risk and arrival week planned against the buyer's shelf date.
- 05
Arrival inspection — condition checked before the fruit is released into distribution.
- 06
Distribution consistency — the same grade going out in week 14 as went out in week 12.
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Frequently asked questions
Which countries does PR Agrifresh import fruit from?
Nine: South Africa, Chile, China, New Zealand, Italy, Poland, Egypt, Turkey and Vietnam.
Why does India import fruit from the southern hemisphere?
Because the seasons are inverted. South Africa, Chile and New Zealand harvest during India's off-season, which is how cherries reach Indian shelves in December and premium mandarins are available through the middle of the year.
Which fruit comes from Chile?
Cherries and plums, arriving in India between November and April with cherries peaking in December and January.
How long does fruit take to reach India by sea?
It varies by origin — Vietnam and Egypt are the shortest routes in our network, Chile and New Zealand the longest. Transit time is planned backwards from the buyer's required shelf date.
Does PR Agrifresh buy directly from growers?
Yes. We hold direct relationships with growers, packhouses and export desks in each origin rather than buying through intermediaries.
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Source with us
If you are buying imported fruit in India, or growing it somewhere in these nine countries and looking for a route in, tell us the category and the window you are working to.