At Le Dauphin, the French artichoke season has restarted. "Because the plants produced little or nothing due to the drought at the end of last year, combined with the mild weather in March, they are now starting about two weeks earlier than usual, with very good quality," says Jeroen Bosschaart.
© Izak Heijboer | FreshPlaza.com
Jeroen Bosschaart and Myriam Le Gall of Le Dauphin during Fruit Attraction
"At the moment, there is still a reasonable volume of supply from Spain at relatively low prices. However, that does not mean there is no room for our large, heavy artichokes, as there are many customers who prefer to start with a higher-quality, higher-priced product," Jeroen explains. The French artichoke season runs from now until mid-November across all varieties.
© Le Dauphin
"We are looking forward to a new variety, of which there will be more available on the market this season. It is a nicely rounded, compact artichoke with less damage during packing. This variety is expected to replace the Camus in the coming years, although that process will take around five years."
The main markets for Le Dauphin's artichokes remain Benelux and Scandinavia. "On the one hand, we have seen volumes decline sharply in certain markets over the past decade, but in recent years we have stabilised or even seen slight growth, where the right packaging for the right customers plays an important role," says the Dutchman, who has been working in Brittany for decades.
For more information:
Jeroen Bosschaart
Le Dauphin
ZI des Carmes - BP 62
29250 Sant Pol de Leon, France
Tel: +33 2986 92622
[email protected]
www.ledauphin.fr
