Red, yellow and green bell peppers are one of the fastest-growing lines in the Egyptian capsicum export program — and one of the most technically demanding. Color uniformity, wall thickness and an unbroken cold chain decide whether a container arrives as a premium retail product or a claims file. Egypt’s greenhouse and net-house production, running October through June, gives importers in Europe, the UK and the Gulf a long counter-season window at freight rates Dutch and Spanish product cannot match in winter.
PEIVANA, the flexible Egyptian exporter of the PEI Trade family, packs colored peppers for retail and wholesale programs out of Alexandria, Damietta, Sokhna and Port Said. Here is the buyer’s specification in full: grades, calibers, cartons and the cold-chain settings we hold from packhouse to port.
Varieties and Grades
Egyptian export capsicum is grown from blocky Dutch-genetics hybrids under protected cultivation. Commercial colors are red, yellow and green, with orange available on program request. Grading tiers:
- Class 1: fully colored (85%+ surface color for red/yellow), firm, three-to-four lobed, glossy, calyx fresh and green, free of cracks, sunscald and blossom-end rot.
- Class 2: minor shape or color deviations, sound and firm — suited to wholesale and food service.
- Traffic-light packs: mixed red/yellow/green in one carton or flow-pack, graded to Class 1 across all colors.
Sizes & Calibers
Peppers are sized by diameter at the shoulder:
| Caliber code | Diameter | Approx. weight | Typical market |
|---|---|---|---|
| GG | 90–100 mm | 250–300 g | Premium retail (EU/UK) |
| G | 80–90 mm | 200–250 g | Retail standard |
| M | 70–80 mm | 160–200 g | Retail / wholesale |
| S | 60–70 mm | 120–160 g | Wholesale, food service |
Packing Formats
| Format | Net weight | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Open-top carton | 5 kg | Industry standard; single color or traffic-light |
| Carton, loose | 4 kg | UK retail spec, count-controlled |
| Flow-pack 3-pack in carton | Trays of 3 × ~500 g | Retail-ready mixed colors |
| Plastic crate | 8–10 kg | Regional wholesale |
Standard palletization is 240–252 × 5 kg cartons per pallet, 20 pallets per 40′ reefer — roughly 24 tons net per container.
Season: October to June
Protected cultivation runs the window from October through June, with peak volume and best pricing December to April. See how peppers overlap with other winter vegetables on the Egyptian produce seasons calendar.
Cold Chain and QC Checkpoints
Peppers are chilling-sensitive — the correct carriage setting is +7 to +8°C, not the 0–2°C used for leafy lines. Below 7°C, pitting and stem-end mold appear within days of discharge. Our checkpoints:
- Harvest: dry-cut with 1–2 cm stem, picked before field heat builds.
- Color check: minimum 85% surface color for red and yellow Class 1.
- Firmness and wall: hand and knife checks per lot; soft or thin-walled fruit rejected.
- Pre-cooling: forced-air to 8°C before loading; reefer set at +7–8°C, 90–95% RH, vents 15–25 CBM/h.
- Residue compliance: MRL analysis per EU or GCC limits with each program.
Mixed-Container Fit
At +7–8°C, colored peppers are ideal anchors for a mixed produce container from Egypt, traveling comfortably with cucumbers, zucchini and beans. Gulf buyers regularly build them into our Gulf retail mixed container — five to eight lines, one reefer, one set of documents. As the flexible exporter, PEIVANA builds mid-size programs from a few pallets per line.
FAQ
What temperature should Egyptian peppers be shipped at?
+7 to +8°C with 90–95% relative humidity. Colder settings cause chilling injury; warmer settings shorten shelf life.
Can red, yellow and green be mixed in one container?
Yes — same temperature regime, so colors can be split by pallet or packed as traffic-light cartons in any ratio.
What shelf life should arrive with the fruit?
With an unbroken cold chain, expect 14–21 days from packing — enough for 5–10 day transits plus full retail rotation.
Get a Pepper Quotation
Full specs are on the peppers product page. Send your caliber, color ratio and destination port — we return a same-day quote. Contact PEIVANA or message us on WhatsApp.