Last week Sakata organized 'demo-days' for their outdoor cultivation, and despite the severe weather conditions, there was enough quality products to discover out in the field. From beets to spring onions to broccoli.
"Spherical, well stored and with beautiful, deep colors," this is how Pieter Vermeulen de Cardeal describes one of Sakata's beat varieties. Worldwide beats are pretty large, but the Netherlands is behind, "It is a very healthy product. They call it a 'super-food' and its nice color makes it an attractive vegetable. There are many options with this vegetable," says Pieter Vermeulen while walking to the Golden Eye. This golden beet opens a relatively new market, "The yellow beet attracts both traders and growers. So it is smart to be able to react to this in an effective way." The colorful beet collection is complemented with the red-white Chogia, "A bright, beautiful beet. This one should not be cut into cubes, but instead into thin slices so the colorful stripes remain and you can do something fun with it."
Totem has been very important in the spring onion sector for years now and although the main variety seems irreplaceable the new hybrids show that many interesting things are still happening in this market, "The Yoda is a bit quicker, and comes earlier onto the market. This allows us to close the season. Countries such as Senegal are also being more responsive," says Vermeulen. This is how it is with most introductions: the new varieties respond to local conditions, "We can bring improvement to the beginning and the end of the season. And they are hybrids, so the resistance is worth it. Also, placing everything on one variety is never desirable." Another notable product, that is on trial for the second year now, is the BO11263F1.
Vermeulen makes his third stop on the field in Zwaagdijk-Oost, the Netherlands at the Chinese cabbage, "We are bringing some beautiful varieties to the market. The Kiseki is a breakthrough for the summer and fall, and also for storage. It is resistant to clubroot and can withstand the heat. It also has a nice color."
Fact of the day: the bottom of a white radish has a very strong taste, but inside the top it is very sweet, "We will soon have three new varieties," says Vermeulen. He has a taste of the Sweetball, a May turnip that can be sold like a radish, "A new project is starting between growers and supermarkets." There are also interesting varieties of chard. Vermeulen is looking for growers who want to test it out.
Pumpkins can grow in any weather conditions, that is why Sakata has beautiful butternuts despite the heat and heavy rain. The company recently organized a large butternut conference in which European developments were discussed, "The size is good, very uniform. The crop is healthy and has a long shelf-life." The Crown Prince is also included, "It has a good taste, although it does not look like it."
And last but not least, what would a visit to Sakata be without broccoli? "Can't miss the broccoli," says Vermeulen. Before the spring and fall two new varieties were presented. The Triton grows faster than the Iron Man and did well in the trial tests conducted by growers. There is a lot of demand for this product.