For VBT and its members, 2019 was a year of which to be proud. This Belgian growers cooperative has a turnover of €982 million. That was in the fresh fruit and vegetable market. In the frozen foods sector, it was more than €100 million. It was, without a doubt, a record year.
"All the producer organizations affiliated with VBT achieved an amazing commercial feat. They saw their revenue grow by more than €50 million. That is a five percent increase. An unbelievable achievement on the highly competitive fruit and vegetable market," says a VBT representative.
Supply and sales
In 2019, VBT's producer organizations' supply value, therefore, topped €1 billion for the first time. It went from €977 million in 2018 to €1,067 billion in 2019 - an increase of nine percent.
Last year was a productive year - producer organizations received both more fruit and vegetables. With vegetables, there was a noticeable supply of tomatoes - an increase of 17 million kg. For fruit, the sharp rise in the number of apples supplied (+49%) is particularly striking.
That is because the apple sector was hard hit by late night frost in the disappointing 2018. Strawberries, with a five percent higher supply, also did well in 2019. In short, 2019 was a fruitful year for the Belgian fruit and vegetable sector.
Fresh market fruit and vegetable sales rose by five percent. They did not only reach the €1 billion mark. With leeks in the lead, these products had a 25% increase in turnover too.
Tomatoes excelled - TOVs showed an 18% increase, and loose tomatoes did 12% better than the previous year. Cucumbers had a more difficult 2019, and their revenue dropped by 16%. The remaining vegetables' sales figures were the same as in 2018.
The fruit sector's picture is very diverse. The scorching, dry summer of 2018 affected pears' quality. So, their 2018/2019 season's turnover fell by 11%. That was due to low prices. In contrast, the apple supply rose sharply, but prices dropped almost proportionally.
That was due to a European overproduction in 2018. Fortunately, the 2019/2020 season's start was a little more positive. That resulted in increased apple sales. Strawberries continued to do well last year. They showed a slight supply increase with a slight price decrease.
Ingro is a Belgian cooperative for industry vegetables. Last year, for the first time, they realized a supply worth over €100 million. They ended the year on exactly €100,9 million.
Click here for the whole annual report (in Dutch).
For more information:
Luc Vanoirbeek
Verbond van Belgische
Tuinbouwcooperaties (VBT)
136 Tiensevest
B-300, Leuven, Belgium
Tel: +32 (0) 16 20 00 80
Email: info@vbt.eu
Website: www.vbt.eu