Teboza has been busy with Dutch asparagus again for a while now. "In week 6, we started with the harvest in heated greenhouses. Because we can manage the conditions quite well, the start of the harvest can be planned well. At our company, we mainly see the Fortems variety score well when it comes to quality," Will Teeuwen says.
Thicker
"The past summer hasn't caused an above-average growth on the asparagus fields. Particularly in July, the rain and cold night temperatures have hampered growth quite a bit. Normally, this should lead to a decreased production for the 2015 season. The winter hasn't been harsh, but it has provided a better and longer resting period than the year before. Normally, this would mean that the asparagus will be slightly thicker on average," the asparagus grower says.
"Right now, all greenhouse growers should be in production. From this week on, the harvest from heated wind tunnels will start, and the harvest in heated outdoor cultivation has also started, a week earlier than expected for the time of year. So this year we aren't extremely early, like in 2014, but definitely not as late as 2013. From the cold land (Gijnlim variety with mini tunnels) not much produce is to be expected before Easter. I estimate the start of the harvest to be in week 14-15. As long as the night temperatures stay below 5 degrees, not much will happen with normal outdoor cultivation. For the next two weeks, this appears to be the case. After all, asparagus only begins to grow at 11 degrees and higher. But for the coming weeks, good volumes are still expected, especially because forced cultivation has seen a lot of expansion," Will says.
Abroad
"When we look abroad, Germany is starting production later than the Netherlands this year. The weather conditions have been slightly less advantageous there. Particularly in the east and south-east of Germany, the current weather conditions are more wintry than spring-like. In the north of Greece, the weather is also not much better, with temperatures comparable to the Netherlands. In Spain, the harvest also started later due to the strong northern wind. Here, the harvest began a week ago. There are also reports of Peruvian asparagus being less available, which could also have something to do with the position of the US Dollar," the grower goes on to say.
"All in all, the interest in asparagus has gone up again. A week ago, several retailers in the Netherlands and Belgium already had (Dutch and Belgian) asparagus on store shelves. In week 12, nearly every retailer in the Netherlands will offer Dutch asparagus. As usual, demand is mainly high before Easter. The price is expected to remain high up until Easter. That means the available volumes will correspond to the demand," Will expects.
For more information:
Will Teeuwen
Teboza
Zandberg 14b
5988 NW Helden
Tel: +31 (0) 77 307 1444
Fax: +31 (0) 77 307 7398
w.teeuwen@teboza.nl
www.teboza.com