The past three weeks of rain have complicated open-field lettuce harvesting at Lucassen Agri Cultuur in the Netherlands. "The machines couldn't get over the beds. We could, fortunately, keep harvesting, but it was no fun," says John Lucassen, laughing.
John, his brother Wiel, and his wife Anouschka cultivate all kinds of lettuce on about 120 hectares. This year, their children also joined the company. The lettuce assortment is very diverse and includes butterhead, red and green oak leaf, Lollo Rossa, Lollo Bionda, Batavia, multi frisée, endive, Romana cos, and various Salanova varieties. Iceberg lettuce was added to the package this year. Lucassen harvests from early May until late October.
"The advantage of iceberg is that we can harvest it entirely mechanically, just like all our other lettuce varieties. Except the Romaine lettuce, for which we have a harvesting belt. Machine harvesting is a must for us to guarantee good working conditions for our employees. We use self-driving harvesters. The lettuce comes in at working height and only needs to be cleaned and packed," explains John.
They sell most of their lettuce to Dutch processors, with some going to France, Italy, Greece, and Germany. "Demand is great, but that's because it's rained so much everywhere." John is optimistic about lettuce consumption too. "Demand keeps rising, and meal salads keep gaining popularity," he says.
"That's also why our family business is confident about the future. However, the shrinking resources package is challenging. So far, we've managed to complete the cultivation. But no more resources must vanish because then it will become truly problematic. After all, we're dealing with a natural product, and agents that work 60-70% of the time are useless," John concludes.
For more information:
Lucassen Agri Cultuur
5 Helenaveenseweg
5975 MS, Sevenum, NL
Tel.: +31 (0) 653 371 063
Email: j@lucassenagri.nl
Website: www.lucassenagri.nl