"People in the UK make decisions quickly but when it comes to prices, they do not make a move quickly. Winter contracts are often fixed up to week 17. This includes Easter," says Johan Vrijland of the Dutch company, JNV Produce. This marketing company focuses solely on exports to the United Kingdom.
"The Spanish trade's quality is not great anymore. So, the demand for Dutch products is slowly increasing. With cucumber, the UK buyers have switched completely to the Dutch product now. Bell peppers still find themselves in a transition period here and there," says the exporter. "It is a good thing that Easter is falling late this year. Along with a good weather forecast, we are going to have a good weekend."
"Prices are at a normal level for this time of year. Tomato and cucumber prices are actually too low. Bell pepper prices are better, especially for green bell peppers. A reasonable shortage of these has also developed in Spain," continues Johan. "The British Pound's exchange rate has been very flat recently. However, compared to previous periods, it is still at a reasonable level."
The fact that Brexit was postponed did not come as a total surprise to the exporter. "We could, however, not exclude the possibility that things could go wrong anyway. We, therefore, had to keep all our options open. But I am pleased with the postponement," he says.
"I am still convinced people in the UK were not properly prepared. It would have been chaos had things turned out differently. Brexit's delay now offers a little room to breathe and less uncertainty. However, I do hope the topic remains on the agenda. I hope that decisions will not be made in the last weeks again."
Local British greenhouse vegetable cultivation has remained relatively stable according to Johan. "If Brexit were to happen, it would accelerate local cultivation. However, you cannot just suddenly add a hundred greenhouses. There will always be a demand for Dutch greenhouse vegetables in the United Kingdom. Of this, I am sure."
"The question is only on what conditions and at what price? That country is experiencing a rise in discounters. This increase in discount stores is not reducing the pressure on prices. All in all, a challenging season awaits us. We are looking forward to it. Never a dull moment," Johan concludes, on a positive note.
For more information:
JNV Produce Marketing
242 Honderdland
2676 LV Maasdijk, NL
Tel: +31 (0) 174 241 400
Fax: +31 (0) 174 244 942
sales@jnvproduce.nl