The Dutch top fruit harvest is in full swing. “All in all, the harvest is looking good. We have a good harvest on the branches. It is positive that we had a dry picking season. It is only detrimental to the colouring of the apples, but we will suffer less from storage rot this year. Sizes of the pears are still a bit disappointing, but the quality of the fruit is perfect, except for fruit from the regions in Belgium and Limburg that suffered from hail,” says Kees van Ossenbruggen of the cultivating, sorting and trading company of the same name from Ingen, the Netherlands.
Van Ossenbruggen Fruit has access to 80 hectares of their own cultivation and 10 million kilograms of cooling capacity, and, in addition, they work with cultivators throughout the Netherlands. "We have Elstar, Jonagold, Goudreinetten, Conference, Comice, Lukassen, and cooking pears," says Van Ossenbruggen.
Van Ossenbruggen still sees a market for strains such as Jonagold, which are decreasing in share, if good quality is supplied. “For the domestic market you just need to have a good Jonagold. As long as we are selling good Jonagold apples, customers will remain loyal, but I would advise to supply only good quality, and leave later harvests for processing. But Elstar remains number one in the Netherlands.”
“Sales are currently gradually starting. During the picking period trade is mainly focused on the domestic market, but the temperatures have not exactly been good for selling apples. I always remain positive, but we are naturally facing another great challenge this year. The biggest problem is still the Russian boycott. It is affecting everybody. The cultivators receive too little and trade margins are under pressure. It will continue to be hard work", Van Ossenbruggen concludes.
Van Ossenbruggen Fruit
Bulksestraat 1
4031 JW Ingen
