Code yellow for leeks

Although the extremely warm weather doesn't stimulate the sales of leek, the prices are high at the moment. This points to a tight market, contradictory to the weather forecast, code yellow. "Leek that is coming onto the market at the moment was planted before the dry period. It had a good start and with irrigation this growth can be maintained. However, the leeks from this period are coming to an end and then we will have the leek that had to start off in the hot, dry ground. How this will progress will become apparent over the coming weeks, but it is likely less kilos will come from the fields," says Gijs van den Oever of Van den Elzen Groenteverwerking from Uden. "Add to this that the holiday period will soon be over and it will get cooler... I expect strange things to happen on the market due to this." Code yellow could move into code orange.

Code yellow isn't just applicable to leeks. It will probably apply to all open ground vegetables, believes Gijs. The open ground situation doesn't just affect the Netherlands, but the whole of Europe. He has the impression that traders and supermarkets are still underestimating the influence of the current weather conditions. Van den Elzen Groenteverwerking isn't at all. Guiding the cultivation down the right path takes a lot of extra work, especially if you want to supply top quality you have to be on top of it as a grower. Irrigation has been in full swing for weeks and "they spray water, but don't run on it." Whether the current price level will be sufficient to compensate all the efforts and costs isn't yet clear. "We won't be able to tell until afterwards,".

The weather problems come on top of the poor season last year, in which there was little to be made for leek growers. Van den Elzen Groenteverwerking would like to finish it. "We were really looking forward to a new season with new opportunities, but it's another disaster. But 'no disaster is a disaster too' so maybe the current situation is an opportunity in disguise," concludes Gijs.