(Archive photo).
According to the producers, as this species is cultivated practically all over the world, the fact that demand increases in one country is a consequence of the lack of production in some other area. "For example, in Brittany, there was a 20-25% drop in production this year due to the weather and a smaller production area."
The situation appears to be stable on the domestic market. "I did notice a higher demand from the processing industry, though, probably due to the lack of foreign produce."
"The warm temperatures are causing a few problems - we are a week early. We will have to see how the cultivars yet to be harvested behave. If they are early too, there will be some overlaps until mid-December, so there may be a gap between late December/early January." The producer stresses it is still too early to make a forecast though.