While the previous weeks were pretty busy in the cabbage trade, it's a lot quieter this week. Prices of Danish cabbage ranged from 27 to 30 cents, those of red cabbage from 31 to 33 cents for the various sizes. "But it's not busy now," Gerard Sevenhuijsen of Tuindersbelang from Warmenhuizen emphasizes.
Buyers of Dutch cabbage are mainly from European destinations at the moment. "Just like in the onion trade, in the cabbage trade it's a matter of filling gaps. When there's less produce somewhere for whatever reason, we turn up. It's a disaster when no disaster is happening," the trader concludes. "During the season, we also export beyond Europe to destinations like Israel, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia.
In certain areas, the Dutch cabbage harvest suffers quite a bit from the rain. "It will definitely not be a top production this year, quite the contrary. The quality of the cabbage coming off the field now is good, but I dare not predict how it will come out of cold storage," Gerard says. "The German cabbage also suffers from humidity, while in Eastern Europe productions suffer from drought. Would that offer opportunities for a good market? One would think so."