The past year produced an unprecedented situation for Reichenau market gardeners who have a focus on "greenhouse cultivation". On the one hand the rising energy costs and the more expensive operating resources, on the other hand the uncertainty surrounding consumer spending power. Due to the strong sales share of almost 50 percent organic vegetables in particular, it was really a challenging year in terms of sales, says managing director Johannes Bliestle.
The high temperatures from March 2022 led to an early start of the vegetable season, with rapidly increasing volumes. Additionally, private household demand for vegetables was again somewhat weaker after the two years of Covid. At the same time, consumers were clearly uncertain and reluctant to buy in view of the war in Ukraine and the sharp rise in the cost of living. Regionality dropped in importance among retailers. Instead, the retail landscape in 2022 was characterized by offers, price discounts and the battle for market shares. According to the AMI consumer price survey, fresh produce became 12.1% more expensive for consumers in 2022. Vegetables, at 4.9%, and fruit, at 0.4%, increased only moderately and ultimately brought up the rear in terms of price increases.
Supply of fresh regional vegetables ensured
Despite very difficult conditions, Reichenau's growers once again ensured the supply of healthy, local vegetables with 14,000 tons of fresh vegetables. Within the individual vegetable products, however, there were minor changes. For example, the approximately 3.9 million heads of lettuce did not match the previous year's volume or average price. Another main product, cucumbers, also saw a slight decline in volume, although this was more than made up for by a significant increase in mini cucumbers, which totaled 3.2 million.
With a harvest of more than 2,000 tons of organic tomatoes, practically every fifth organic tomato in Germany came from the cultivation area of Reichenau-Gemüse eG. But it is not only regarding the cultivation of tomatoes that Germany's southernmost growing region scores high, but also in terms of varieties, diversity and taste. The cultivation of peppers shifted somewhat in the direction of eggplants due to increased demand. At over 3 million, cultivation thus increased by almost 50%.
Outlook for the 2023 vegetable season
It has rarely been as difficult to cast an outlook on the coming vegetable season as it is this year. There is no end in sight to the war in Ukraine, and this means no significant easing of energy prices can be expected. Accordingly, farms must prepare for further increases in production costs. "That is why farms are examining which crops are profitable to produce and whether all lands can be used. Therefore, we expect a decline in volumes for some vegetable varieties in 2023," says Managing Director Johannes Bliestle.
This year, Reichenau-Gemüse eG started the season very early with its lettuces, partly due to the mild winter and a high level of sunshine. "Due to the somewhat worse weather in March, the harvest of the subsequent crops is somewhat delayed. Nevertheless, the first regional cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers are already on their way to the consumer."
For more information:
Reichenau-Gemüse-Vertriebs eG
Marktstr. 1
78479 Insel Reichenau
Tel.: +49 7534 9200-30
Fax: +49 7534 9200-148
Mail: info@reichenaugemuese.de
Web: www.reichenaugemuese.de