The marketing of celeriac has been very poor this season. "Eastern Europe has been able to harvest late thanks to relatively favourable temperatures, and that is where the main weakness lies. Demand is fairly average across the board. No market really stands out at the moment," says Pierre Sweep.
"Eventually, the market will pick up, but nobody knows when that will be. Given the temperatures, that could easily happen a month later than we are used to. Until then, we have to keep our heads down," continues the outdoor vegetable trader. "But you also have to look at the celeriac yield over a five-year period, and a year like this is simply part of that cycle."
"It does help that a lot of tubers have already moved into the early segment. Quality is excellent. Celeriac is an expensive crop to grow, but because the quality is good, we can process large volumes in a short time. Prices are currently around 22–25 cents per bag. Given the supply and quality, we are at least in a position to scale up again when the market allows it. We can also store for a long period this year, so hopefully it will be a late spring. This season saw a major expansion in acreage, and hopefully that will ease back again next year."
"Demand for outdoor vegetables overall is moderate. Even in white and red cabbage, we see excellent quality and sizing, but sales are very thin. One exception is the turnip market, which is tight and undersupplied. In fact, from the start of the season up to now, sales have been good."
"We now grow rutabaga on about 60 hectares, which makes us the largest player in the market. Our aim is to expand cultivation in the coming years, including in the early segment. There is sufficient grower interest in turnip production, especially since the sugar beet quota has been cut by 10 per cent and turnip belongs to the same crop family. That said, producing a good-quality turnip is not that easy."
"We have a broad sales spread, with about a third going to slicing, a third to wholesale, and a third to retail. This diversified marketing is important because it allows us to place our volumes effectively," Pierre concludes.
For more information:
A&P Sweep
De Langeweg 9a
4762 RA Zevenbergen
Tel: +31 (0) 6 53 15 53 23
[email protected]
www.sweep.nl
