Up until 10 days ago, strawberries only sold below production cost, while now it seems they're selling at any price. This is what emerged during the technical meeting promoted by Crpv on Varietal innovation of protected crop strawberries held on 3rd May 2017.
Initial speech by Faedi
Coordinated by Walther Faedi and Gianluca Baruzzi, the meeting at the Moretti facility in Cesena started with a round of opinions. Ronnie Campidelli from Agrintesa said that "in the south, production dropped by 50% compared to 15 days ago and prices are good. Both Cesena and Verona are covering crops not so much to hasten harvesting, but rather to protect them."
500 gram tray of strawberries with a high Brix level showing a photo of the producer. An idea of Agribologna
Maurizio Fabbri is a producer from Romagna, growing around 90 thousand plants together with his brother Roberto. The fruit is collected by the Agribologna consortium. "We chose quality, preferring the Joly variety for its high sugar content. This year, volumes are rather low because of the weather, but flavour is exceptional. 500 gram trays showing a photo of the producer (my brother Robert in this case) are proving very popular."
Left: Matteo Birolli from Aposcaligera
Matteo Birolli, technician from Apo Scaligera, explained that the group is focusing on varieties such as Eva and Garda and testing a few selections part of the Crapo family.
Some of the varieties on display
Mirco Zanelli from Apofruit reported the good feedback obtained by the Sibilla, Clery and Joly varieties, even though April was a rather heavy month for strawberry cultivation in the south.
Strawberries in polytunnels at Moretti
Tiberio Pompili and Mauro Ascari from Orogel Fresco started by saying that the "market is recovering and perspectives are good, also because the fruit is excellent and has a good shelf-life. Brilla is one of the most popular varieties, followed by Tecla. Sales are going well, especially in Denmark, Austria and Germany, where the local produce is still missing due to the weather. Things should continue like this for the next 15 days."