“The frost we had last year around this time has clearly left its marks in both the field of pricing and in the quality of a large part of the batches. The differences in price per grower haven’t been this large in a long time. The companies that are completely equipped with irrigation installations will do much better this year. These companies have satisfying volumes regarding price levels. However, this year also sees a large group for whom the more favourable price couldn’t compensate the loss of volumes,” says Mark Vernooij of Urfruit from Vorden, the Netherlands.
“Sales are going well, but it remains challenging to explain the difference in quality to customers. Great product just has a higher price. The free market is a bit unsettled at the moment, particularly in the field of the second class product. For many parties it’s now the time to sell product, both in apples and pears. This results in some price pressure. On the other hand, we should be happy if the market is free of problematic batches early in May. These batches appear fair in storage, but their shelf life is incredibly short. Looking at current price levels it’s actually irresponsible to continue taking risks with batches like that,” Mark says.
“Stocks in the Netherlands are below the level of previous years for both apples and pears when sales are more or less similar (the sales for apples are a bit lower). This means there might be a ray of light at the end of the tunnel. So far, however, shelf life has been shorter more than once this season compared to previous years. We might be happy this year if we ‘finish’ earlier than in other years. An additional price rise is always desirable, but if this results in a considerable increase in the percentage that is lost, it won’t do much good on balance.”
The exporter concludes his interview with a tip: “Late this week we expect Conference to be in full bloom. As things are looking now at our production company, we’re optimistic about the expected production of next season. If you have the time and there’s an orchard nearby, this weekend would be great to walk or cycle near the orchards!”
For more information:
Mark Vernooij
Urfruit
Hof van Kettelerij 20
7251 DS Vorden, the Netherlands
T. +31 (0)575 472 473
m.vernooij@urfruit.nl
www.urfruit.nl