"We have been producing and selling strawberries for 30 years"

"We started growing Payaro strawberries on about 3 hectares in the spring of 1994." According to Francesco Nicodemo, commercial manager of Italian Nicofruit, the harvest took place in April and May and lasted no longer than 40-55 days.

The 1994 strawberry season

"We continued with Payaro for another 4-5 years because we noticed that the bare-root and fresh types allowed us to extend the harvesting period by up to 100 days. In the fall of 1994, we planted 1 hectare of Osogrande strawberries. Over the years, we tried different varieties, including Antilla and New Tudla, until we arrived at Sabrosa-Candonga and Inspire. To this day, we keep on cultivating them. We have always enjoyed testing new alternatives to find viable options."

Francesco Nicodemo in 1998

Slow but steady growth
In the 30th year of the Nicofruit Group, 90 hectares, including those owned by Nicofruit and those belonging to associated growers, are dedicated to the cultivation of strawberries. Compared to four a few years ago, there are now 27 associated growers. The increase in the area under cultivation has been gradual over time, and so has been the increase in the number of growers. "The aim was to transfer the know-how we have acquired over time and to bring us all up to the same production and packaging standards."

"This is how we grew from a small family group to an organization of producers. We have always been inclusive and professional. What made us grow was the ability to look ahead, to plan and to be proactive, such as eliminating insecticides from the strawberry crop. As early as 1998, we began replacing chemicals with antagonistic beneficial insects."

Francesco and Demetrio Nicodemo

It is well known that Basilicata is Italy's main region in terms of the number of hectares under strawberry cultivation. Nicodemo says that he is pleased to have played a part in helping to achieve this record. "All the local companies have worked together, and now we have a real, well-known brand (Fragole della Basilicata) that determines the prices of Italian strawberries. There is not a single supermarket that does not distinguish the strawberries produced in Basilicata from those produced in other regions."

Above-soil strawberries

The challenges of the future
The first few weeks of harvest and sales have brought to light a number of critical issues. "One in particular," says Nicodemo, "and one that has been with us for a few years now is the harvest calendar. We have a need for early and high-quality varieties that will allow us to start harvesting in the middle of November and still maintain their characteristics in April and May. We are currently experimenting with 5 or 6 selections from different nurseries, with the aim of finding a variety with a high standard of quality that will give us strawberries from November to May. Today, there are only a few early varieties, and the numbers are small. We make at most two shipments each week; there is a significant commercial response, but volumes are limited."

"There are always production peaks in April. This is a typical phenomenon that will probably be less of a burden this time around because the transplanting phase lasted for about 60 days, from the beginning of October to the whole of November. The last plants replaced in the fields will be produced later, so this could help us both labor-wise and commercially. That is what we are hoping for," he concludes.