"The high strawberry prices are largely due to the warm weather and stores running out faster than usual," says Win Meyers, owner of Meyers Softfruit. "Yet we see that the strawberry prices are dropping back to a more normal price. At the moment we don't have enough fruit due to the change in cultivation. The strawberries are being planted again and will go into production in one or two weeks. The soft fruit has all been cleared and we are planting it again for the autumn cultivation."
Every year it is difficult for Meyers Softfruit when cultivation has to change. "Normally we put the cultivation on a waiting field, but this year everything had already been cleared and so we were able to plant everything easily. In other years we continued until the start or mid July and this year we're much earlier. This explains why the prices of strawberries are so high," according to Wim. The grower expects the supply of strawberries to grow again, but it will take a while. "I see among colleagues that the continuing varieties will be in full production next week. Our strawberries won't arrive for another week or three. And the soft fruit grown in the greenhouse won't be here until after August."
Drought
The company notes that the supplies of water are shrinking due to the drought. "There's no reason for panic just yet, but we do notice how dry it is. Our strawberries are grown on substrates and normally we use rainwater with added fertilisers. Due to the drought, we have had to switch to spring water, which is slightly lower quality in terms of cultivation. The rainwater is also used to cool the roofs of the greenhouses. We always have water somewhere, but I believe the drought could turn into a problem for many," concludes Wim.
For more information:
Wim Meyers
Meyers Softfruit
Allewijstraat 3
B-3770 Riemst
+32 (0)478 938 826