"Spring 2025 was relatively quiet," sums up Michael Penzkofer, who has been managing Gartenbauzentrale Main-Donau eG since the beginning of the year. "Retailers bought fewer quantities than in 2024. Lettuce is a good example: there is a surplus of lettuce throughout Germany because sales are down." Similar sales difficulties have recently been experienced in the greenhouse sector, especially with tomatoes.
Michael Penzkofer (left) was also elected to the BVEO board in March 2025.
Gartenbauzentrale Main-Donau eG is one of the most important producer cooperatives in southern Germany and has two locations in Gundelfingen (focusing on outdoor production of root vegetables, radishes, cabbage, and cauliflower) and Albertshofen (focusing on greenhouse cultivation of tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and on outdoor production of cauliflower, kohlrabi, leeks). The company continues to focus on the production, processing, and marketing of root vegetables, with carrots as the undisputed long-term favorite. Penzkofer: "We are currently seeing no sales problems whatsoever in the root vegetable category. Thanks to bumper yields in 2024, we were able to supply retailers with high-quality washed carrots until April this year, whereas in other years we usually had to stop in February." The first carrots from the new harvest are expected at the beginning of July.
At its Gundelfingen site, Gartenbauzentrale Main-Donau has a modern sorting and washing facility for carrots and a packing line for root vegetables in small bundles. These investments aim to gradually reduce the number of staff involved in processing.
Pre-cut celery is trending
The Gartenbauzentrale Main-Donau has recently started offering pre-cut celery at the request of retailers. Penzkofer: "We have been delighted with the positive response and have already exceeded our planned quantities several times over. One of our producers was already processing celery as part of his soup vegetable mix. He now also produces this item as a standalone product. The producer also sources goods internally from other member companies, creating a win-win situation for everyone. In addition, this product expansion enables us to make use of oversized produce that would otherwise be unsellable on the fresh market. We are also open to further product ideas in this direction if there is demand from retailers and a certain level of sales security."
Sliced celeriac
Structural change and cooperation
Similar to many other cooperatives, a gradual generational change is taking place at Gartenbauzentrale Main-Donau among many member farms. "It can be assumed that some farms will cease operations in the near future due to a lack of successors. These areas cannot always be compensated for and integrated one-to-one by other member farms, as they often do not have the necessary capacity. An interesting development is the number of newcomers to vegetable farming that we have gained in recent years. These are mainly agricultural businesses that are giving up livestock farming and seeking an economic alternative. If the respective farms are willing to join the cooperative, we are happy to support them in the conversion and actively assist with the necessary knowledge transfer," confirms Penzkofer.
Insight into the fruit vegetable portfolio. Greenhouse cultivation is primarily concentrated at the Albertshofen site.
All in all, the cooperative's management is confident about the future. "Before I was appointed managing director, I was already working in quality management, so I was already familiar with the tasks and challenges facing the cooperative. In a cooperative model, many different views and interests have to be considered, which requires a certain amount of empathy. However, the most important thing is a positive atmosphere, and this can already be felt among most members, especially among the younger farms and those where a generational change has already taken place. We are also keen to collaborate with sales partners, particularly where our product ranges complement each other well. This creates synergies, for example, in the customer structure: thanks to this cooperation, we can get our products listed with a growing number of food retailers."
For more information:
Michael Penzkofer
Gartenbauzentrale Main-Donau eG
Bächinger Strasse 75
89423 Gundelfingen/ Do.
T: 09073/ 9503-10
F: 09073/ 9503-22
[email protected]
www.albert-gundel.de