"We have to be careful the blueberry doesn't become a commodity"

Sil Moonen of BerryFarm.nl has started with the first blueberry harvest. The grower has production areas in Drenthe, Limburg and near Oldenburg (D) and brought the first early varieties on the market this week. Last week, the price was still at a reasonable level, however, now there is more supply and the price has been halved. The grower is concerned. "Blueberry cultivation has always had the reputation of only being able to go up, but I fear this is no longer an advantages as blueberries are becoming a commodity."

"The Dutch harvest is comparable to last year. It has been said that Poland has less berries as a result of the drought," says the grower, who mainly sells his berries in England, Ireland and sometimes also in Germany. "At the moment I'm not too positive. Due to all the uncertainty, the customers in the British market are withholding. I didn't expect to it have an effect like this. It seems like we will have to pay the difference in the pound."

Photos taken with a drone

Whereas growers used to focus on innovative packaging such as shakers, they are moving more and more away from that lately. "It isn't easy to set up a special line with an English or Dutch retailer. We are trying to specialise more in sending loose product that is packaged in England which suits us better. I see more of a future in selling loose berries," says Sil. He is trying more new varieties in his own testing fields. "There are a number of tasty new varieties with a lot of potential that we hope to introduce over the next few years."

Wind turbines
Sil has been spared from damages in his cultivation so far. "We have been safe from rain and hail damage. We were able to ward off night frost with wind turbines this spring, which meant we were able to save the first flowers. We have 3.5 hectares under plastic to protect them against all kinds of weather influences," says the grower, who organises the sales of 60 hectares of his own cultivation and that of fellow growers in total.

"We are also keeping the suzuki fruit fly under control. There are some about, but not as much as last year," says Sil. He remains optimistic about the season. "During the holidays there isn't much to gain for us. We have to get through this time. The prices will normalise once everyone is back at school!"

For more information:
Sil Moonen
Mortel 27
6088 AH Roggel
Tel: 0031 (0) 475-494727
Mob: 0031 (0) 6-53288523
sil@silmoonen.nl
www.berryfarm.nl