The national commission Bladgroente (leafy vegetables) by LTO Glaskracht Nederland went to England with ENZA in February 2015. Over two days various different companies in the regions of Leeds and Liverpool were visited. There is a clear difference in leafy vegetable growers in both regions.
The growers in the Lancashire region (Liverpool) still see possibilities and perspective in the cultivation and are still investing and innovating. We saw diverse companies there with a good atmosphere. In Yorkshire (Leeds) there are hardly any follow ups to the cultivation companies, resulting in them mostly stagnating or going backwards. For both areas it is a preference to build low cost second hand greenhouses to keep the costs down as much as possible. They also almost never heat. The crops are kept frost free.
Prices
The price formation is difficult. The supermarkets are doing what they've been doing for decades: "Lowering prices to the absolute bottom". Although there seems to be a gradual realisation among the supermarkets that they have to give the growers something to allow product availability. The head lettuce has strong competitors on the shelves in the form of iceberg lettuce, which is much cheaper in proportion. In England the area of Little Gem is growing at the cost of head lettuce and the curly. With a low costing price there is still a market for growing leafy vegetables in England.
The commission was welcomed with open arms and had an open exchange of thoughts with their overseas colleagues.