From red oxheart cabbage, to red napa cabbage and red Little Gem, many types of vegetables are available in red variations nowadays. Special vegetables are in great demand, the catering industry in particular wants to present something special on their plates. On 29 and 30 September, these types of novelties and various autumn vegetables were presented by BelOrta in their sale rooms. Customers could enjoy the colourful presentations of fruits and vegetables.
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New packagings
“A completely new product is chayote,” says Sofie Lambrecht. “This pear-shaped and hairy fruit is related to the cucumber. It is officially from South America, but can also be cultivated in Belgium.” In addition to the new chayote, hand-cleaned sprouts could also be found in the newest BelOrta packaging with its wooden look. The Chicoleaves (chicory leaves) were also presented in a new bag. The cross between curled endive and chicory, friseline, was special. “This looks beautifully curled, and it is hearty, flavourful and has a long shelf life.”
Tomatoes
Some specialities are no longer true specialities, after increased production and fame. “Eventually they become common, as happened with cherry tomatoes,” Lambrecht explains. “Yet we continue to innovate these products. Recently, the Lily tomato, with its delicate and elegant shape, was added to our range, and we also offer mini San Marzano. A cultivator recently started producing the pink beefsteak tomato, Monte Rosa, for us.”
Mini
Miniature products are also very "in" right now. “Chefs can use these to garnish their plates. We offer, for example, the Courgettini, a miniature courgette. This courgette is softer on the inside and available in yellow and green. We expect many companies will be interested in this. We think it is a hit in the making.”
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Three segments
BelOrta has divided its products into three segments: BelOrta fruit & vegetables, BelOrta chef and BelOrta bio. Lambrecht: “All of the regular products we eat daily come under the first line. The BelOrta chef line consists of the more special products and innovations often used by chefs. BelOrta bio is for our range of organic fruits and vegetables, which we expand annually. We cannot always keep up with demand, but we try to meet this as much as possible. Nearly all of our products also have an organic variant.”
Sofie Lambrecht
BelOrta
Tel: +32-(0)15 56 5292
sofie.lambrecht@belorta.be
www.belorta.be