Last week, Ludo Rosseels' peaches officially received recognition under the Flemish Regional Product label. The peaches grown by the farmer from Gelrode, near Aarschot, may now carry the Streekproduct.be labeled. This was decided by VLAM's Regional Products Sector Group. "We are the only ones in Belgium still growing peaches, in the traditional way and directly for the people, and I want to continue doing that until my retirement. It's an honour to receive this recognition, which will certainly help us to keep going. It's good publicity and gives us extra visibility."
© Ludo Rosseels
That he is still on his own, Ludo says, cannot be separated from the challenges of cultivation. In the 1960s, peach growing could still be compared to today's Belgian top fruit sector, but that changed rapidly. "In the past, before and just after the war, this region around Aarschot, Wezemaal, Gelrode, and Betekom was full of peaches. The areas around Halen, Borgloon, and Broechem also had many peach orchards back then. Everyone had a peach orchard," he recalls.
"In the 1970s, that changed. After several severe frost years, many growers in Europe received grubbing-up premiums and switched to apples and pears. Those crops offered more security: they could be stored and sold over a longer period, whereas peaches had to be picked and sold immediately. The arrival of cold storage facilities further accelerated that shift."
Sales in your own hands
For Ludo's father, however, giving up was never an option. He took over the peach business in 1976 from his own father, who had started it in 1956. "My father decided not to stop but began with a small roadside stall, and that's how we've been selling directly to consumers since 1976. So we've been doing that for almost 50 years now."
On why they continued to see potential in peach growing, Ludo is clear. "We kept going because we controlled our own sales. By selling directly, we don't have to go through the auction, and we can ask a fair price. Compare it to potatoes, which are currently sold at rock-bottom prices on the free market, but farmers who sell them 
© Ludo Rosseelsat home do not do so at the auction's kilogram price either. They can ask the price they need on their own farm, as long as people are willing to pay it. So we've gone our own way too. Of course, it brings risks, but it has also allowed us to keep going."
Challenging
And that's what Ludo, as a hobby grower (though with four hectares it's quite a substantial hobby), alongside his full-time job, still passionately pursues, even though recent years haven't been easy. "Due to drought and heat, cultivation is becoming increasingly challenging. I don't have irrigation myself, so that makes things harder. Moreover, the past three years were frost years; last year, we didn't even have a harvest at all. But yes, that's part of farming. This year was already better, though still a tough season. The season runs from late June to early September, about nine weeks in total. This year, the quality was good: smaller sizes due to drought, but the taste was excellent."
As a result, the grower still sees steady demand for his regional product. "Our customers mainly come from the area around Aarschot, but we also get people from further away — sometimes even from Bruges or Ostend, who come especially to pick up a few crates. So the demand for Belgian peaches definitely remains. The big difference compared to imported fruit is freshness. Our peaches are picked daily, ripe from the tree. You can taste that — fresh, full of flavour and aroma. That's why I still see plenty of future in this, and with this recognition, we can give it a beautiful continuation," Ludo concludes.
For more information:
Ludo Rosseels
Perziken Rosseels
Rillaarsebaan 252/232
3200 Aarschot, Belgium
+32 475 63 42 30
