Young buyers and families love sweetcorn, mostly in processed form. As a result, the market for sweetcorn is on the rise. This concerns both domestic production and imports, was the interim conclusion of the German Corn Committee (Market Commentary, 25.07.2018). Growers recognize the uptick in terms of sweetcorn, as confirmed by a survey by FreshPlaza.de.
Meanwhile, the German acreage amounts to more than 2,000 ha and from year to year, a slight expansion is being recorded. The most important growing areas include Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Rhineland-Palatinate and NRW. "This year we are expecting an average harvest," reports a Bavarian producer who also supplies to the processing industry. "The fi
rst volumes were brought in about 3 weeks ago and we are expected to be able to clear more cobs up and into October." There are currently a large number of varieties in Germany, both conventionally and organically grown.
Developing step by step
Whether it concerns fresh sweetcorn or processed products, the origin of the product will become an increasingly important purchasing argument, it is said. This is particularly true for the sweetcorn, once an exotic vegetable culture. "In the area of processing, too, one tends to become more sensitive to the origin of the sweetcorn. Furthermore, organic products are coming to the fore: We ourselves produce organic sweetcorn on about 15 percent of the total acreage. In general, I think that cultivation and consumption will increase step by step."