The picture of the market for organic white cabbage is the opposite of the regular market. "The stores in the organic market are almost depleted, especially the kilo sizes of 800-1300. High prices are being paid for the last dribs and drabs, the more unmarketable sizes are now sold easily for a good prices, as the availability is already so low," says Mtoto Keijzer of Bioport. "Usually the growers can supply until June, but we are now around 2 months ahead."
The average price this season was 15 to 20 percent higher than in previous years. "This is mainly due to there being less volume. It was a difficult year. Quality issues are always there but this year the weather conditions have had the most influence, which meant the kg per hectare were considerably lower too. We also see this in other organic cabbage. In general all volumes are lower than last year. Red cabbage, savoy cabbage have been gone for a while, pointed cabbage is also running out."
Bioport markets organically grown Dutch and Belgian products all year round. Most is intended for export, particularly to the UK, France, Scandinavia and Germany. The demand for organic has been increasing for years and more and more growers in the Netherlands are switching to organic cultivation. Last January-March it was announced at the Bio-beurs in Zwolle that 20 new growers had been certified for organic cultivation for the current season. "A considerable area is being added," says Mtoto. Whether this has to do with better prices this season, who knows? "An individual grower can have a good harvest and earn well, but usually higher prices don't make up for the lower yields completely," concludes Mtoto.