In Belgium, the Corina pear season has begun anew. This is an early Conference pear variety. "The first pears are being picked, and we're all set to go," says coordinator Willy Dillen of the Corina Producers Association.
"The weather, as we know, hasn't made the season easy. So, we're expecting a 30% lower harvest. But otherwise, there are few production concerns. The quality's high. The growers have worked hard. They've thinned a lot to get a good size distribution. And the Brix level is also good."
"As always, sales-wise, we have some competition from the Northern Netherlands stored Conference pears. But those quantities are now declining sharply. Supermarkets can therefore get going with our crisp, local pears. We have an advantage in this respect. We have more small pears in the range than the classic Conference. Those are especially popular with our retail clients in the United Kingdom and Scandinavia," says Willy.
"Besides those countries, the local Belgian market is also crucial for Corina pears. We want to be in all the Belgian supermarkets this year. And it looks like we'll succeed. The demand for fresh, locally grown produce is greater than ever. In times of crisis, that's the safest option too. So, we're deliberately trying to find supermarkets that want to offer their customers fresh, locally grown products."
This year, Bel'Export, Koen Vanherck and Vergro are marketing Corina pears. "We try to sell these pears within two weeks. Then we can stay ahead of the competition from the standard Conference," says Willy. "That's an ultra-short period. But we'll manage it again this year. After all, it's the only Conference product that's currently coming fresh off the trees. That's a unique selling point. It's a nice precursor to the Conference season."
The Corina acreage hasn't increased this year either. "We've intentionally kept this stable for several years. We can market the current volume nicely. In a normal year, we get 2.5 million kg. This year, that's a little lower. It's, however, important not to have a surplus," Willy concludes.
For more information:
Bel’Export NV
Simon Wouters
Tel: +32 (0) 474 501 304
Email: simon.wouters@belexport.com
Website: www.belexport.com
Koen Vanherck BV
Tel: +32 (0) 493 367 640
Email: koen@koenvanherck.be
Vergro NV
Geert Schoofs
+32 479 27 90 61
Email: Geert.Schoofs@vergro.com
Website: www.vergro.com
Willy Dillen
Corina Coordinator
Tel: +32 (0) 494 469 487
Email: Willy.dillen@acutifolius.be