At the Belgian organic farm VerKen Bio Deli-Vers, they started growing PiqaBoo pears last year. Kris Wouters once called it 'a new fruit species', and VerKen Bio Deli-Vers's Gerard Kenens sees plenty of potential for organic farming.
PiqaBoo
"As a company, you must dare to see change as a solution when things aren't going well. Jonagold sales have been tough for a while, and managing scab in Conference pears is also challenging. That complicates things even more for organic growers. You can protect against it by constantly spraying. But that's like mopping up while the tap's running. Plus, organic growers would rather not spray against scab so often. So, you must consider other varieties before you're only growing fruit for the processing industry," Gerard begins.
Scab resistant
The cultivation company, which grows organic top fruit on about 21 hectares, has already begun growing Qtee pears. "That's down to our good cooperation with Wouters Fruit. We started with this a while ago, and the area doubled again last year. This year's Qtee season was excellent, with good yields and sales. That should do nothing but improve in the years to come."
Qtee
"That's also why we began looking at the new PiqaBoo variety. With the Wouters family's drive and guidance, there are clearly great opportunities in resistant varieties. The PiqaBoo doesn't yet have a large organic share but offers much potential. Scab is much easier to control in its cultivation. Last April, we grafted the first plot to Piqaboo and will continue with two Jonagold plots," says Gerard.
New experience
The PiqaBoo is seen more as an apple. It has been described as a pear that doesn't need to be perfectly ripe and stays crunchy for a long time. "Technically, it's a pear, but we were invited to taste it before we started working with it. It's truly a whole new experience, a new type of fruit with which consumers still need to get acquainted. The exotic taste may not be for everyone, but a Flemish star restaurant has already picked up on the Piqaboo. They've begun working with it, which I think indicates that it's already popular with enthusiasts."
Gerard Kenens
"We'll have to wait and see how that goes. The first conventional Belgian plots were harvested this season, but it's still new in organic farming. Still, considering how Kris's first harvest and the earlier volumes from New Zealand - where they have a lot of experience with this fruit - went, you see there are opportunities aplenty. Also, we already wanted other varieties to replace the Jonagold, so this is a nice test case. We hope to follow a similar path as with the Qtee," Gerard concludes.
For more information:
Gerard Kenens
VerKen Bio Deli-Vers
74 Zilveren-Helmen Street
3545, Loksbergen, Belgium
Tel.: +32 (0) 474 199 809