Just over two weeks ago, Spain was hit by heavy storms that left the European fruit and vegetable sector holding its breath. Worse was the impact on the market, which is very much influenced by Spanish imports. Meanwhile, there is an update: Worst affected are leafy vegetables and cabbages such as broccoli, planting of these is now delayed a bit, but the harvest will not fail. At the Frankfurt wholesale market, the mood seems relaxed.
"Although we receive a lot of Spanish goods, the storm has had no impact on our day-to-day operations," says René Jurk, Managing Director of bunnfrucht LLC based at the Frankfurt Fresh Market. "In our store, Spanish products account for around 75% of sales, but the effects of the situation are only noticeable in the margins." Although Spain is already getting ready for exporting vegetables, there are still plenty of vegetables from both Germany and Holland. "We just ordered iceberg lettuce from the Netherlands today to prevent a shortage in the coming weeks, but at least one of our Spanish suppliers has already committed to deliveries from next week."
René Jurk at the wholesale market booth during the visit of FreshPlaza to the Frankfurter Frischezentrum in June 2019.
For bunnfrucht GmbH, September is generally a difficult month, so no large volumes are currently being sold in any segment: "We are a very import-heavy company and we buy a lot from Spain and Italy - but September has been a weak month for ages. "There are two reasons for this, according to Jurk: On the one hand there is a lot of domestic goods and the gardens of the consumers are still fully stocked. "And besides, people just came back from their summer vacation and now they have to tighten their belts to save on Christmas and the next vacation," he laughs.
The cooler weather that is currently prevailing in the Frankfurt area after the warm summer, additionally depresses the demand for summery imported products such as peaches, nectarines and grapes. Due to the warm temperatures, bunnfrucht had come through the summer well, with an abrupt drop in demand in the first week of September.
In November, the marketer will go on: "Then we start with the citrus from Spain, including clementines, oranges and lemons, which are in great demand this season, but also the range of (fruit) vegetables, from iceberg lettuce to cucumbers, peppers, eggplant and zucchini, then picks up speed."
For more information:
René Jurk
bunnfrucht GmbH
Josef-Eicher-Straße 10
D-60437 Frankfurt am Main
Tel: +49 (0) 69 / 94 333 2-0
E-Mail: info@bunnfrucht.de
Website: www.bunnfrucht.de