<p>The Australian stonefruit season is in full swing at Montague fresh. Plum volumes are proving to be as good as forecast. Varieties now being harvested are Black diamond, the new red skinned red fleshed variety Sunrise and Amber Jewel. The weather has been good so far but the heatwave which has seen temperatures reach in the mid 40s has gripped much of south eastern Australia this week. This heat is likely to cause some issues for growers over the coming weeks.According to Rowan Little from Montague Fresh, the market has been strong with solid exports so far, "Plums, white peaches and nectarines are going well as there is not much from Chile this season due to the frosts they suffered."One of the dominant export markets for the company is Asia, which is very strong at the moment and returns are better than last year due to the favourable exchange rate. Little explains that the domestic market is also strong this season.The stonefruit season will run to the end of February - beginning of March, after this the apple season begins with the first Gala harvests expected in the coming two weeks. Montague supplies mainly the domestic market with apples.<br></p>