Pfalzmarkt für Obst und Gemüse heralds the official start of the 2024 fresh vegetable season: Conditions in Germany's vegetable sector are outstanding. Due to the relatively short but cold winter, the harvest of the first vegetable crops this season began at the end of February, marking the earliest start in decades! Currently, Pfalzmarkt offers customers and consumers a complete range of seasonal vegetables from open-field cultivation. In addition to crispy fresh head and leaf lettuces, the selection includes kohlrabi, spring onions, radishes, rhubarb, strawberries, and asparagus.
Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Pfalzmarkt eG Christian Deyerling (center) with Pfalzmarkt board members Hans-Jörg Friedrich (right) and Reinhard Oerther.
Spring onions traditionally kick off the season in the Pfalz vegetable garden
Spring onions have been harvested at Pfalzmarkt since the end of February – about two weeks earlier than in previous years. As the largest contiguous vegetable growing area in Germany, the Pfalz offers the best climatic conditions for natural and sustainable growth. Pfalzmarkt board member Reinhard Oerther gives an initial interim assessment of the current season's start in open-field cultivation. "Just like last year, our producers have shown full commitment and have leveraged the natural early harvest advantage of the Pfalz. Following the spring onions and radishes, we at Pfalzmarkt have been able to expand our range of garden-fresh spring vegetables on a weekly basis. For example, we also have kohlrabi on offer again this week!"
Thanks to smart cultivation and harvesting planning, Pfalzmarkt producers can harvest several times a day. "To ensure garden freshness is available in supermarkets and on wholesale and weekly markets within a few hours, Pfalzmarkt ensures extremely short and fast routes to consumers nationwide. A key component of this excellent fresh logistics is provided by Hall 4 at Pfalzmarkt, where the official kickoff to the fresh vegetable season 2024 takes place: It is among the largest and most modern marketing centers for fresh fruits and vegetables in Europe and sets – thanks to optimized goods flows – literal freshness standards."
Top sellers: Celery and Chinese cabbage gain in importance
From A for apple to Z for zucchini, Pfalzmarkt offers about 140 different fresh products and over 15,000 different article variants during the season. Reinhard Oerther: "Regarding customer demand and sales weighting of the bestsellers at Pfalzmarkt, there is an exciting trend: Celery, Chinese cabbage, and Hokkaido pumpkins are gaining popularity!"
Pfalzmarkt's comprehensive sustainability strategy bears first fruits
The comprehensive sustainability strategy, which Pfalzmarkt pursues in areas such as fruit and vegetable cultivation, fresh logistics, species protection, and in the generation of renewable energy, is bearing its first fruits and is very well received by customers and consumers. Hans-Jörg Friedrich, a board member at Pfalzmarkt , says, "In Hall 4, we installed a rooftop PV system covering about 23,000 m2 for 2.5 million euros in 2023. This should make the energy supply of Hall 4 more autonomous and thus make Pfalzmarkt more future-proof!"
Annual report: Pfalzmarkt confirms previous year's results
In 2023, nearly identical to 2022, 200,000 tons of fruits and vegetables were marketed through the trading platform at Pfalzmarkt. The sales volume amounted to 252 million euros, thus also remaining at the previous year's level (2022: 252 million euros). The number of employees at Pfalzmarkt was kept constant at 200. The number of active Pfalzmarkt producers is currently at 90.
"To become as independent as possible from foreign fruits and vegetables in times of advancing water scarcity in Southern Europe and globally uncertain supply chains, a rethink is urgently needed. To maintain competition and thus reasonable consumer prices, domestic cultivation, which scores points for freshness, CO2 balance, and sustainability, is essential. Instead of promoting particularly healthy, because locally and sustainably grown fruits and vegetables in Germany, especially with regard to supply security, the opposite is currently happening politically: Medium-sized fruit and vegetable growers are being deprived of investment capital through increased levies, worsening their competitive situation!"
"Shaping a healthier and more livable future"
Pfalzmarkt eG is actively addressing future challenges. The cooperative is increasingly focusing on a new generation of young producers and is investing sustainably in Germany's vegetable garden. The appeal to trade and consumers, therefore, is: We should reduce global dependencies and consciously opt for more domestic seasonal produce. Christian Deyerling, Chairman of the Supervisory Board at Pfalzmarkt: "If the trade consistently offers domestic fruit and vegetable specialties as soon as they are ready for harvest in Germany's vegetable garden, we could together achieve greater sustainability very easily and make our future healthier and more livable!"
For more information:
www.pfalzmarkt.de