It's a great time for asparagus growers. "Last week, this week and next week are the top weeks of the season," says Will Teeuwen of Teboza from Helden (Limburg). "The temperature reached summery levels locally, and the night temperature is a bit higher, causing production to continue steadily. Because the weather reports for the coming week are around 16-18 degrees, supplies will be somewhat lower after next week. In a way I'm glad about that, because demand traditionally increases around Pentecost, and then at least we're able to keep prices level."
"This week, I expect the price to reach the lowest point of the season, unless we get really summery temperatures. Ascension Day also means we're losing a day of sales. But all in all, we definitely shouldn't complain about the price level. Demand is extremely high, and huge volumes of asparagus were sold. The auction price is still over 4 Euro, which is good for this time of year in particular. Last year, the price was already around 2-2.50 Euro in week 18, but then the season was also two weeks earlier. In terms of kilos, we are behind compared to other years, especially last year, and I don't expect us to catch up again. We're saying goodbye to some plots shortly, which also goes for other growers. So it's not a top harvest, but it does keep the price level," Will notes.
According to the grower, interest in asparagus has been high since the start of the season. "Retail particularly buys a lot of asparagus, and the supermarket promotions are spread out nicely. Recent years have seen good interplay between suppliers and retailers, with communication sometimes being possible about promotions a week in advance. Both sides benefit from that. The more the supermarket is on top of things, the bigger the success of the promotions. All in all, I'm quite pleased with the development of the season, and enough produce will also be available in the second half. The late plots are only entering full production now, so consumer and retail have every opportunity to go for it!"
For more information:
Teboza BV
Zandberg 14 B
5988 NW Helden
Tel: +31 - (0) 77 307 14 44
Fax: +31 - (0) 77 307 73 98
verkoop@teboza.nl
www.teboza.com