For Terre della Luce, a growers' association from the southern Italian region of Basilicata, it is time to take stock of the past year and plan activities for the next season. President Carmela Suriano and sales manager Alberto De Vincenzis shared with us the situation around the price increases and uncertainty in sales.
"We are closing 2022 with 14% more volumes on the market, but with 7% less sales. Yet there was less demand from the market than usual for all our products, and sales prices were lower than in 2021. And then, of course, there were the cost increases. The main cost items for our growers were labor, energy, fertilizers and seeds," said Suriano.
Carmela Suriano, chairwoman of OP Terre della Luce
"Making predictions is very difficult in these times of economic crisis. We will continue to work to support our members, to innovate and to offer high-quality products to the market. But hopefully the conflict between Russia and Ukraine will end as soon as possible and the socio-economic framework will improve again."
Terre della Luce is specialized in growing strawberries, which account for 50% of production and more than 70% of the growers' association's turnover. "For 2022/23, our members have significantly reduced the strawberry acreage and invested in new technologies and early varieties. They are also trying to manage natural resources more sustainably, organize human resources better and be present on the market longer with quality products," explained De Vincenzis. "Both outdoor and substrate cultivation techniques with low environmental impact are used, allowing us to offer the market a quality strawberry for more than six months."
Box of Happy Berry brand Marimbella strawberries - OP Terre della Luce
The strawberry varieties marketed by the growers' association have a low need for cold-hours and are available the first days of November. "We are currently harvesting the rooted cuttings of the variety NSG 203 - Marimbella®, which represent about 15% of our strawberry acreage," continued De Vincenzis. "This type of plant allows us to start the season earlier. We then start picking strawberries from the fresh plants in January and we continue that through June. With different varieties and different types of plant material, we can offer high-quality strawberries to the market for more than eight months. By doing so, we build a loyal customer base and keep consumers satisfied. Our growers make efforts to continuously improve the offer, with the introduction of new early and quality varieties and cultivation with increasingly sustainable techniques."
For more information:
O.P. Terre della Luce Soc. Coop. Agricola
Via San Maurizio, 60
75025 Policoro (MT)
(+39) 0835 18.52.977
[email protected]
terredellaluce.it