Kale sales booming, sprouts lagging behind

At Glas-Groenten in Broek op Langedijk, the Netherlands the busy period has started up again. Glas-Groenten specializes in regional winter vegetables. Kale is the flagship of the family business. The company grows kale on 54 acres of land and also buys it from farmers in the area. Most of the kale is supplied to supermarkets already pre-cut.

Although the winter weather has not yet made its appearance, kale sales are doing well, "It is very busy," says Mike Glas. "We are more focused on the domestic market, but I am hearing that kale exports are becoming more and more attractive. Some kale goes to Belgium and Germany of course, but exporters are increasingly looking at further destinations, like Dubai for example."

The season usually lasts until March/April, dependent upon the temperature. This year the Dutch harvest did not do well in many areas, "We had a good harvest, but I have growers who were only able to harvest 50% of their crops due to the moisture," says Mike. In the Netherlands kale sales are mainly done on a contract basis, "On the free market, there is almost no kale for sale."

Unlike kale, sprout sales are not yet booming, "During the first weeks of the season many stores stocked up on sprouts. The season started with prices of around one Euro, but since then the price has dropped by a cent each week. This week there was some retail promotion for the little sprouts. I hope sales pick up over the next few weeks," says Mike.

More information:
Glas Groenten VOF
Dulleweg 36
1721 PM Broek op Langedijk
T: 0226-313981
F: 0226-320245
E: info@glas-groenten.nl
W: www.glas-groenten.nl