The beautiful sunny weather is a godsend for Michel van den Berg of the Dutch wholesaler De Best AGF. "Spring stayed cold for a long time, which put our sales behind compared to last year. But when the weather became so nice last week, that immediately improved. People have their vacation bonuses, and the restaurants and beach bars are crazy-busy," he says.
"Regarding soft fruit, supplies remain limited, and most varieties are expensive. The cold spring meant productions were slow to start. Good strawberries still go for more €2/500 g. But, these days, everything has a price. You see that with imported fruit too. If they can't get the price they want in Spain, they'd rather not send it."
"After a hesitant start, the peach and nectarine supplies are now plentiful and cost almost nothing. There's a significant cherry shortage, though," Michel admits.
"Most of the crop in the major Spanish cherry growing areas has been lost. You currently pay €10/11 for a kilo of good Spanish cherries. But, the power of seasonal products is evident; people simply pay those high prices."
"And, with this hot weather, watermelons fly off the shelves. There's ample supply. Spanish watermelons are selling for between €0.80 and €0.85, and Moroccan ones for €0.50 to €0.60. Galia melons, too, are selling well in this weather. Supply is great and not too expensive, so we have all the ingredients for good sales," Van den Berg explains.
He usually sells far fewer vegetables in the summer. "You still sell some iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers, but people don't even consider something like endive now. We have to truly rely on the fruit."
Michel is confident about the company's future. "Winters are increasingly difficult for us. People can park their cars in heated areas at many supermarkets and then don't go to the market. But in the summer, no one can beat us. Besides all the order customers, we still have a lot of walk-through buyers who come to choose their merchandise in person," he concludes.
For more information:
Michel van den Berg
Best AGF
Tel: +31 (0) 623 728 028
Email: [email protected]