Not all Dutch would want to eat sprouts in the height of summer. “Seeing sprouts as a winter vegetable is part of our small-minded world. Other countries do not have this historical baggage, and especially in emerging markets sprouts are considered a hip vegetable,” says Menno Molenaar of Van Oers United. “We are seeing a trend that, globally, more customers want to extend the season, and they start ordering sprouts early, even if we only have limited volumes available.”
The company has already started harvesting in France mid-July, followed, on 20 July, by the first Dutch sprouts. “We started extremely early this year, to meet demand for fresh sprouts. We made a plan with our Dutch cultivators in order to guarantee availability this early in the season,” says Molenaar. “Current production is lower than expected, but demand is good, and prices are at a good level. In the coming weeks prices will drop to a more regular level.”
“We have heard rumours that the Dutch sprout area decreased by ten per cent, but, for the market situation and price levels, the total production compared with demand is more important than the number of hectares,” Molenaar continues. “At the moment there is talk of a real demand market, and demand for sprouts is truly coming from all over the world. The US and Southern Europe are currently in the market for Dutch sprouts, we are sending samples to Hong Kong and in Scandinavia they want sprouts on the shelves year-round, just as in certain Dutch supermarkets, for that matter.”
For more information:
Menno Molenaar
Van Oers United
Tel: +31 (0)186-608052
mmolenaar@vanoersunited.com
www.vanoersunited.com