The first German pumpkins have already been on the market since early July. Due to the dry weather conditions of the season so far, last year's volumes will not be reached, said Georg Thalhammer at the beginning of the domestic main harvest. "At the moment, we are anticipating a 30-40 percent reduction in volume compared to the previous year," says Bavarian, who is a supplier of organic pumpkins to food retailers nationwide.
Halved organic pumpkins will appear in German food retailing from the beginning of September for the first time.
It is also believed that the local organic pumpkins will be selling quite quickly, certainly as discounters increasingly switch to organic. "Aldi Süd nowadays offers organic pumpkins only, Lidl has an additional Bioland range in addition to the conventional selection, and Edeka and Kaufland are focusing on Demeter pumpkins." Over the last few years, organic pumpkins were always able to enlarge their the market share during the season. Conventional
growers marketed their products mainly in the first stages of the season, so organic pumpkins came on the market in large quantities only later, Thalhammer adds.
Right: Wholesale supplier Georg Thalhammer
Demand for organic pumpkins increasing continuously
All in all, demand has risen rapidly according to Thalhammer, especially in the winter months. "Twelve years ago I delivered organic pumpkins to Aldi Süd for the first time. At that time, we started in mid-September, and immediately after Halloween, the supply was turned off. At present, local organic pumpkins are available until the winter, after which they switch seamlessly to the import season." But regionality has a high priority in terms of (organic) pumpkins, says Thalhammer. "As soon as the first German pumpkins arrive, no more Spanish goods are being sold. At the end of the season or in January-February, the first Dutch pumpkins appear on the market again. As expected, there will probably be earlier Dutch goods this year due to the low yields."
Packaged halved pumpkins for the German food retail.
There is a clear trend in that the acreage for organic pumpkins will gradually expand, in parallel with the steadily growing demand. "The number of organic growers will expand, but it is above all the existing large-scale suppliers that are expanding heavily. The smaller ones, on the other hand, prefer direct marketing within the region."
Redpack NTS BMS
New varieties for processing
Pumpkins are arriving at the customer's in increasingly better shape, observes Thalhammer. To supplement the product range, halved pumpkins will be offered in cooperation with Aldi for the first time this year. "We also try to enter the market with pre-cut, cubed pumpkins. It's definitely an exciting project: I'm curious how the actual demand at the POS will turn out." 
The processing line for organic pumpkins from Redpack Machinery
The Hokkaido squash still accounts for 90 percent of the German market, although some other varieties have been catching up in recent years. Thalhammer cites the butternut squash as an example: "At the moment, the demand for butternut is still fluctuating from year to year, but I believe that it will prevail on the market in the medium term. We first want to offer Hokkaidos as a product that is processed further: If everything goes according to plan, we will also deliver halved butternut pumpkins and even nutmeg pumpkins."
For more information:
Georg Thalhammer
Gesundes von Feld und Wald
Handel mit Biolebensmittel e.K.
Tannenweg 10
D-97854 Steinfeld
Tel.: 0049 9359 9090376
Fax: 0049 9359 9090415
Mobil: 0049 171 5342785
E-Mail: georg@georgthalhammer.com
www.georgthalhammer.com
www.biofeinkost-onlineshop.de