"Cabbage sector facing a challenge"

On Tuesday, the Brassica Congress was held in the Provinciehuis in Brugge, Belgium. As the name suggests, the day's theme was the cabbage. The congress was opened by Bart Naeyaert, a Member of the West Flanders Provincial Executive and Flemish Minister of Agriculture, Joke Schauvliege.

"West Flanders is the heartbeat of the Belgian agricultural sector. Sixty percent of open field cultivation occurs in the western parts of Flanders. Belgium is also one of the market leaders when it comes to the processing of frozen vegetables", stated Minister Schauvliege. The Minister then expressed her pride in how the sector dealt with the period of dry, hot weather.

In the next block of speeches, three speakers delved into the production and consumption of cabbage in Europe. "The most important cabbage crop in Western Europe is cauliflower. It is followed by white cabbage, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. The cultivation and consumption of pointed cabbage are growing, while that of Brussels sprouts is decreasing. Cabbage consumption trends are changing."

"The acreage used to grow broccoli has increased substantially in recent years. 'Broccoli is on the move' has a good image and seems only to be growing", said Pim Neefjes of Syngenta. "The past period has not been a positive time for cabbage. Market prices were moderate, and export volumes were also not very high. Prices have since recovered. I think we are going to have a good season."

A lot of cabbage gets processed into frozen products. Fifteen percent of Belgium's frozen goods go to the UK. "I expect that British consumers will have to pay more once Brexit has been concluded", said Neefjes. The speaker from Syngenta also discussed cabbage consumption. "We have seen a fall in the consumption of Savoy cabbage while kale is experiencing a climb. This increase is due to the health trends."

The next speaker elaborated on the cabbage situation in Eastern Europe. He stated that many growers there are having a difficult time due to climate change. This is reflected in diseases and pests, such as whitefly. Another challenge facing the Easter European cabbage sector is finding workers. "Mechanization in the sector can be the solution here", said Grzegorz Pastuszka of Bejo Zaden.

After a break, B. Haspeslagh of Ardo discussed the frozen goods industry. "Belgium is the largest supplier of cauliflower for the frozen goods sector. Frozen broccoli comes mainly from Spain and Portugal." However, it is important to emphasize the health aspects of cabbage varieties. These varieties must not be seen as old-fashioned. Cauliflower and broccoli rice were used as examples. After the speaker from Ardo was done, the cultivation and packaging specifications of cabbage were discussed.

Mia Demeulemeester closed the Congress with a summary of the speakers. Cabbage is a vegetable with a bright future. However, there are still some challenges facing the sector. After the lectures, there was time for a short reception. The day was brought to a close with a dinner at the Weinebrugge Hotel.