Real niche market
He indicates that there has been little supply of romanesco all year. "The season can be compared to cauliflower. The peak was in July, we were around 4,000 of them back then. In the autumn another 6,000 boxes were supplied with 6 per packaging. It's a really niche market, a special vegetable not eaten that often." He indicates that the interest in Romanesco has grown recently. "We now have a customer considering placing it in their assortment permanently. If this is the case, the volume will increase drastically and we will create a more consistent supply." The price level is also similar to that of cauliflower. "In October cauliflower was very cheap, around 27 cent. Only around half a Euro was paid for Romanesco during that time. On the other hand the volume is that small that you can't really draw conclusions."
Specialisation
He believes interest from the trade for special products has certainly grown. "We are definitely aware of it. If someone brings out a special vegetable well, there is certainly interest. We are sometimes amazed by the demands from some customers. Even discounters are taking a chance on specialising more in the area of fruit and vegetables in recent years."
Interest in greenhouse cauliflower
The interest in cauliflower has decreased in recent years. "This is mainly to do with the fact that households are becoming smaller and smaller, urbanisation and the trend of people wanting to spend less time preparing products. There is interest in greenhouse cauliflower. It is a special product. Especially during this time of the year there is a good demand. Because it is supplied in little tomato boxes, they look gorgeous: like something special."
For more information:
Guy Jennes
BelOrta
Supervisor Sales
Mechelsesteenweg 120
B-2860 Sint-Katelijne-Waver
T +32 (0)15 56 52 94
F +32 (0)15 56 53 60
guy.jennes@belorta.be
www.belorta.be