Sourcing fresh produce from Brazil and Türkiye: harvest windows, logistics and Incoterms
Sources checked 21 Oct 2026
Short answer
Brazil and Türkiye supply in different months. North-east Brazil ships melons, mangoes and grapes to Europe from September to mid-February, and mango exports to the US concentrate from August to mid-November. Türkiye's early mandarins and lemons start in September, mandarin exports run from October to May, and cherries follow from late May. Plan programs around these windows, ask every supplier to quote under the same Incoterms® 2020 rule, and check EU plant-health and border-control rules for your product before you contract.
Send a fresh produce RFQHarvest and export windows
Each window comes from an official source and says what it measures: harvest, export season or ripening. Export windows are when shipments concentrate, not the only months a supplier can ship. Weather moves every window from year to year.
Brazil
| Product | Window | What it measures | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mangoes, São Francisco Valley — to the US | Aug – mid-Nov | Export season | Sazonalidade da oferta e demanda (manga) — Embrapa SemiáridoSource wordingconcentram suas exportações no mercado norte americano, entre os meses de agosto até meados de novembro |
| Mangoes, São Francisco Valley — to Europe | mid-Nov – late Dec | Export season | Sazonalidade da oferta e demanda (manga) — Embrapa SemiáridoSource wordingpara o mercado europeu, de meados de novembro até o final de dezembro |
| Tahiti limesLargest volumes; with staggered production in the São Francisco Valley, exports can occur in every month. | Jan – Jun | Export season | Análise da tendência e sazonalidade das exportações do limão Tahiti — Embrapa (Alice repository), 22 Nov 2023Source wordingos maiores volumes exportados ocorrem no primeiro semestre. Contudo, com escalonamento da produção, possível no Vale do São Francisco, as exportações podem ocorrer em todos os meses do ano |
| Melons, watermelons, mangoes and grapes via Pecém to Europe (2025/26) | Sep – mid-Feb | Export season | Safra 2025/2026: Porto do Pecém projeta embarque de 200 contêineres semanais de frutas para Europa — Complexo do Pecém (port authority), 22 Sep 2025Source wordingA temporada de exportação de frutas segue até meados de fevereiro de 2026, com escalas para a Europa sempre às sextas-feiras |
| Table grapes, Lower-Middle São Francisco ValleySuitable cultivars allow two harvests a year; the source gives no fixed months. | no month window | Harvest | Pesquisa, desenvolvimento e inovação para a produção tropical de uvas (Documentos 293) — Embrapa Semiárido, Dec 2019Source wordingaptidão para a produção de duas safras anuais no Submédio do Vale do São Francisco |
| Fresh orangesNot a sourcing option: USDA projects fresh orange exports for 2025/26 at virtually zero because pest restrictions limit market access. | no month window | Export season | Brazil Citrus Annual, BR2025-0052 — USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, 6 Jan 2026Source wordingTotal fresh orange exports for MY 2025/26 are projected at virtually zero … due to pests that prevent the export of fresh oranges |
Türkiye
| Product | Window | What it measures | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandarins, early varieties (Primasol, Okitsu Wase, Miho Wase)Start month only; the source gives no end month. | from Sep | Harvest | Türkiye Citrus Annual, TU2025-0067 — USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, 20 Jan 2026Source wordingThe harvest season for early Primasol, Eary-N, Okitsu Wase and Miho Wase varieties began in September |
| MandarinsPeak in December. In 2024/25 the export season started in September (USDA, Jan 2026). | Oct – May | Export season | Citrus: World Markets and Trade — USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Jul 2024Source wordingTurkey exports generally occur from October through May, peaking in December |
| Lemons, early varieties (Meyer), then Lamas and KütdikenStart month only; the source gives no end month. | from Sep | Harvest | Türkiye Citrus Annual, TU2025-0067 — USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, 20 Jan 2026Source wordingthe harvest of early lemon varieties, such as Mayer, begins in September, followed by the Lamas and Kutdiken varieties |
| Sweet cherries — İzmir first, then Afyonkarahisar and Konya | late May – Jul | Harvest | Türkiye Stone Fruit Annual, TU2024-0038 — USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, 26 Aug 2024Source wordingThe cherry harvest first starts in Izmir, located on the Aegean coast in late May and later moves to the inland provinces like Afyonkarahisar and Konya in June and July |
| CherriesMarketing year. | May – early Aug | Export season | Türkiye Stone Fruit Annual, TU2024-0038 — USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, 26 Aug 2024Source wordingThe marketing year for cherries in Türkiye begins in May and lasts through early August |
| Apricots, Şekerpare variety | late Jun – early Jul | Ripening (variety) | Kayısı Yetiştiriciliği — Isparta İl Tarım ve Orman Müdürlüğü (Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry)Source wordingŞekerpare: … Haziran son ve Temmuz ilk haftalar olgunlaşır |
| Fresh figs, Bursa Siyahı (black fig) | early Aug – late Oct | Harvest | Bursa Siyah İnciri — geographical indication No. 391 — Türk Patent ve Marka Kurumu, 14 Nov 2018Source wordingSiyah incirlerde hasat Ağustos başı ile Ekim sonu arasında yapılmaktadır |
| Greenhouse tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, aubergines and courgettesPossible all year in modern greenhouses, per the Ministry of Trade; actual supply depends on each grower's program. | all year | Production | Yaş Meyve ve Sebze Sektör Raporu 2026 — Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Ticaret Bakanlığı (Ministry of Trade), 2026Source wordingdomates, salatalık, biber, patlıcan ve kabak gibi birçok sebze ürünü yıl boyunca üretilebilmektedir |
Crops without a verified window
We did not find an official source stating month windows for these crops on the date shown, so this guide gives none. Ask suppliers to state their harvest and shipping months in the offer.
- Brazil: papaya, avocados
- Türkiye: oranges, grapefruit, table grapes, pomegranates
Logistics
Brazil: the Pecém fruit season to Europe
- The Pecém port authority projected about 200 refrigerated containers of fruit a week to Europe for the 2025/26 season, with weekly calls to Europe on Fridays.
- Each 40-foot reefer container can hold up to 27 tonnes of melons, watermelons, mangoes or grapes from Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco and Bahia.
- About 80% of fruit shipped through Pecém is unloaded in Rotterdam and London; the rest goes to other European ports such as Antwerp, Le Havre, Sines, Hamburg, Bremerhaven.
- The port names the Mossoró (Rio Grande do Norte) melon crop and the São Francisco Valley mango and grape crops as the cargo for this service.
Port figures are the authority's projection for one season, not a capacity guarantee. We have not verified official fruit-export figures for other Brazilian ports, so none are listed.
Source: Safra 2025/2026: Porto do Pecém projeta embarque de 200 contêineres semanais de frutas para Europa — Complexo do Pecém (port authority), 22 Sep 2025
Türkiye: loading point and mode
We have not found an official source that names the ports or road corridors Turkish fresh produce leaves through, so this guide names none. Ask each supplier to state the loading point, the mode (sea reefer, road or air) and the transit time to your destination in the offer.
Türkiye: what the country exports
Türkiye's fresh fruit and vegetable exports were about USD 3.2 billion in 2025, to more than 120 countries and free zones. Iraq was the first market (USD 884.8 million, 27.5%), followed by markets including Russia, Germany, Romania and Ukraine.
| Product | Exports 2025 (tonnes) | Value 2025 (USD thousand) |
|---|---|---|
| Mandarins | 938,807 | 949,927 |
| Lemons | 360,031 | 410,682 |
| Tomatoes | 402,190 | 402,238 |
| Peppers | 166,068 | 290,317 |
| Apples | 124,868 | 136,857 |
| Grapes | 104,289 | 129,662 |
| Cucumbers | 106,536 | 104,020 |
Export volumes and values, not prices. Dividing value by volume mixes grades, packs and destinations, so it is not a reference price.
Source: Yaş Meyve ve Sebze Sektör Raporu 2026 — Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Ticaret Bakanlığı (Ministry of Trade), 2026
Logistics points to agree with every supplier
- Loading point (packhouse, container terminal or port) and mode: sea reefer, road or air
- Temperature setpoint, ventilation and any controlled atmosphere required for your product
- Temperature records from the container or truck for the whole journey
- Pre-cooling at the packhouse before loading
- Pallet format, pallets per container or truck and labelling
- Who books freight and insurance, and where risk passes — set by the Incoterm
Incoterms® 2020
The International Chamber of Commerce publishes eleven Incoterms® 2020 rules. Each one fixes where the seller delivers, who pays which costs and where risk passes to the buyer. Ask every supplier to quote under the same rule and named place so offers can be compared.
Rules for any mode of transport
- EXW
- Ex Works
- FCA
- Free Carrier
- CPT
- Carriage Paid To
- CIP
- Carriage and Insurance Paid To
- DAP
- Delivered at Place
- DPU
- Delivered at Place Unloaded
- DDP
- Delivered Duty Paid
Rules for sea and inland waterway transport only
- FAS
- Free Alongside Ship
- FOB
- Free On Board
- CFR
- Cost and Freight
- CIF
- Cost Insurance and Freight
Fresh produce in containers: FCA and CPT
“The traditional maritime Incoterms® rules FOB, CFR and CIF have an on-board point of delivery that is not suitable for containers…”ICC guidance of January 2024 recommends FCA (named container terminal at the port of departure) and CPT (named container terminal at the port of arrival), or CIP when insurance is agreed, for goods shipped in containers through ports. Reefer fruit from Pecém or a Turkish port usually travels this way.
Source: Incoterms® 2020 FCA and CPT: Best practice for shipping containers through ports — ICC Commission on Commercial Law and Practice, Jan 2024
Insurance under CIF and CIP
Under CIF the seller's minimum insurance is Institute Cargo Clauses (C). Under CIP the seller must insure to Institute Cargo Clauses (A) or similar. Perishable cargo often needs cover the parties agree separately; state the cover you need in the request.
Source: Incoterms® 2020 — International Chamber of Commerce
How a named place reads
- FCA Pecém container terminal, Incoterms® 2020 — the seller delivers the loaded reefer to the carrier at Pecém; the buyer pays sea freight and carries risk from there.
- CPT Rotterdam container terminal, Incoterms® 2020 — the seller pays freight to Rotterdam, but risk passes when the container is handed to the first carrier.
- DAP buyer's warehouse, Incoterms® 2020 — the seller delivers to the named warehouse; the buyer clears import and pays duties.
Incoterms® rules do not cover payment terms, quality claims or transfer of ownership; those belong in the contract. This page is general guidance, not legal advice.
EU entry rules to check
- Most fresh fruit and vegetables entering the EU need a phytosanitary certificate issued by the plant protection authority of the exporting country. The European Commission lists only five fruits that do not: pineapples, coconuts, durians, bananas and dates.
- Product- and origin-specific plant-health requirements are set in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072, under the plant health law, Regulation (EU) 2016/2031.
- Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 can apply increased border checks to named products from named countries, for example for pesticide residues. The lists change regularly: check the version in force on your shipping date for your product and origin.
- If you import into the UK, Gulf or another market, its own rules apply; list them in your request.
Sources:
- Trade in plants & plant products from non-EU countries — European Commission, DG SANTE
- Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 — EUR-Lex, 28 Nov 2019
- Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 (plant health) — EUR-Lex, 26 Oct 2016
- Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 (increased official controls) — EUR-Lex, 22 Oct 2019
What to include in your request
- Product, variety and origin country (Brazil, Türkiye or both)
- Grade, size or count and quality limits
- Volume per shipment and per season
- Delivery window, using the season windows above
- Packaging, labelling and pallet format
- Incoterms® 2020 rule and named place (for example FCA Pecém container terminal)
- Temperature and cold-chain requirements
- Documents: phytosanitary certificate, food-safety certificates, residue tests
- Destination port or city
- Total program value (qualified programs from USD 250,000)
Buyer questions
Can I source fresh oranges from Brazil?
Rarely. USDA projects Brazil's fresh orange exports for 2025/26 at virtually zero because pest restrictions limit market access. Limes, mangoes, melons and grapes are the main Brazilian fresh-fruit exports covered here.
Which months can I get Turkish mandarins?
Early varieties are harvested from September, and USDA says Turkish mandarin exports generally run from October to May, peaking in December. Confirm the exact weeks with suppliers for each season.
Which Incoterm should I use for reefer containers?
ICC recommends FCA or CPT with a named container terminal, or CIP when insurance is agreed, rather than FOB, CFR or CIF, whose on-board delivery point does not suit containers. Use the same rule in every offer you compare.
Does this guide show prices?
No. We found no official price series for Brazilian or Turkish export produce that we could cite with its date and unit. For official European and US reference prices, see the fresh produce buying guide.
Will suppliers contact me directly?
No. A sourcing specialist reviews your request first. Suppliers do not receive your contact details, and any introduction is coordinated by our team.
Is there a cost for buyers, and is there a minimum?
Sending a request is free for buyers. Qualified programs start at USD 250,000 total annual or seasonal value.
Ready to source from Brazil or Türkiye?
Send a private, specification-led request with your season window and Incoterm. Free for buyers; programs from USD 250,000. A sourcing specialist reviews every request before any supplier is approached.
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