Ingo Ehrenfeld grows kiwi berries on a proud ten hectares in the Heilbronn district. "We have now been harvesting for about a week and have also already been able to offer the first fruits of this year's season in our farm store. However, you can tell that the fruits still have to ripen a bit, which is why it will take a little while before the season really gets going," he says.
The initial signs for this year's harvest are quite encouraging, the innovative fruit grower continues. "We expect a good yield, although there has been slight frost damage here and there. The quality, i.e. the appearance of the fruit, is also much better at the beginning of the season than last year. However, the fruits will not be flawless this year either." The Naturland fruit is usually harvested by mid-October.
Ingo Ehrenfeld mainly cultivates the high-yielding and tasty Weiki variety. The large-berry variety Ananasnaya is also grown.
According to the grower, this year's marketing season has started quite well. "However, foreign produce from Portugal and Italy is still clogging up the market right now. Not all food retail customers are interested in the origin and type of production, organic or conventional. From week 41, however, all larger buyers should have gotten in, after which the sales window usually lasts until week 46-47."
Increasing acceptance for regional kiwi berry
The fruit grower from the Neckar region came across the unusual fruit while studying horticulture at Weihenstephan. Then, in 2009, the first plants were planted with kiwi berries. In the following years, the cultivation capacity as well as the marketing channels were gradually expanded. Ehrenfeld: "Nowadays, we also supply food retail markets, mainly in Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate, and are finding that the fruit is gaining increasing acceptance. The same applies to direct marketing."
According to Ehrenfeld, the unique taste paired with the high vitamin content speak particularly in favor of the fruit. "The vitamin C content is quite a bit higher compared to the kiwifruit commonly available on the market. The edible fruit skin also makes the kiwi berry more suitable as a snack for in-between consumption," describes Ehrenfeld, who also produces pome fruit and green asparagus on his farm. In addition to selling the fresh fruit, part of the yield is also processed into juice, which in turn is used to make liqueur.
Marketable goods from the Ehrenfeld farm
Despite the interesting marketing potential, no further area expansions are planned for the time being, he said. "In view of the weather extremes and rising minimum wages, the development of agriculture is relatively uncertain at the moment, even in fruit growing. Overall, the kiwi berry, compared to other fruit crops, is not particularly high maintenance, only the harvest is relatively laborious, as the fruit must be harvested individually," concludes the grower.
Images: Ehrenfeld KG Organic Farm
For more information:
Ingo Ehrenfeld
Bio-Betrieb Ehrenfeld KG
Mittlere Gasse 17
74239 Hardthausen – Kochersteinfeld
Tel.: 07139 – 933146
Mail: info@obsthof-ehrenfeld.de
www.obsthof-ehrenfeld.de