“The situation on the carrot market has been fairly stable for a good while. The prices have been on the high side for the whole season already. And for the time being, we do not expect them to decrease," says Frans Cool of Cool Paul.
"There are already some new carrots from Spain and Portugal on the market. These are, however, on the same price level as the old crop. There is high demand for the old harvest from Eastern Europe, despite the high prices. Many clients prefer the older carrots since their shelf life is much better than that of early carrots."
This Belgian grower and trader expects there still be sufficient carrot stocks. This, despite the low yields caused by the dry weather. "Stocks are lower than other years, but prices are considerably higher."
"The first Belgian and Dutch early carrots are expected in about mid-June. So far, these carrots look good. It has rained, and everything is growing as normal. Carrots meant for storage are being sown around about now," Frans continues.
Organic
“The demand for organic carrots has risen over the last ten years. We expect the demand to continue increasing slightly in the future. We only supply Belgian chain stores with organic carrots."
"It is striking that Germany is a major organic carrot consumer. But the Germans sometimes have no choice in the matter. Supermarkets there no longer sell conventional carrots at all. Organic carrots' prices sometimes only differ EUR0.15 in cost price," concludes Frans.
For more information:
Frans Cool
Cool Paul
204 Bevrijdingslaan,
9200 Appels, Belgium
Tel: +32 (0) 522 15 446
Frans@coolpaul.be
www.coolpaul.be