"Consciously opted for more sales channels"

Spitsbroek has been a well known name in asparagus in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen for years. For two years now the company has also had blueberries. "After eight seasons you can't grow asparagus on the same soil anymore, so we found a solution. It was blueberries," says Bastiaan Dikker, the son who will take over his parents' company in the future.

The company's blueberry area is three hectares at the moment. "We grow the varieties Duke, Liberty and Aurora. In this way we can supply blueberries in multiple months and these varieties follow one another," In price formation the grower looks at the auction prices in the Netherlands and Belgium. "We also keep an eye on the store prices."

Small volume
The first harvest was in 2016. "That was still a small volume. At the moment the amount is higher than last season." The blueberries are sold in the store in Eede and in a machine by the side of the road. "We also converted a container into a sort of market stall and sell our blueberries and processed products such as jam, juices and syrup. We also sell our asparagus in the season."

Multiple sales channels
"The blueberries are not yet well known among our customers. This is why was also organise picking days. As of July 8 people can come and pick their own blueberries every Saturday." Besides the store and the machine the products are also sold via a web store and to supermarkets in the areas. We consciously chose to diversify this." In the past Bastiaan's parents supplied their products to the auction. "I think if you have to make the conscious choice as a producers, to supply to the auction or not. We are quite far from the auction and the transport isn't cheap. When we still supplied to there in the Netherlands we often had to wait and see what you were getting and it was regularly disappointed. This is why we chose various other sales channels."

Step by step
The blueberry season has been going well so far. "The plants have to grow though, and that takes time. We don't harvest tonnes at a time, but it's also good to build this up step by step. Safeguarding the best quality is an interesting challenge. Blueberries have to be picked at the right moment. Not too early: this makes them sour. Not too late: they'll be too soft. Consumer want to have that bite and look for a firm blueberry." Bastiaan certainly sees a future for blueberries. "We follow the market closely and see how it develops. Producing blueberries is very labour intensive and challenging. You really have to be a specialist in it and we want to be," he concludes.

For more information:
Bastiaan Dikker
Spitsbroek
Nieuweweg 2
4529 PW Eede
Nederland
+31 117 35 02 14
+31 6 46 31 04 32
www.spitsbroek.nl