It has beena slow start for broccoli and cauliflower after a recent dip intemperatures. After day time temperatures of around 25°C last week, night time temperatureshave been dipping down to around 10°C this week, with day time temps around15-18°C. The cold should not affect the quality, it is just slowing things downa bit, but not enough where it is causing major delays. The season in northern Poland typically runs from mid-June through to theend of October, is expected to start in two weeks.
Broccoli and cauliflower productionis already underway in the southern and central Poland.
Cauliflower is the most traditional vegetable of the two, but broccoli isquickly gaining ground in the Polish market with the rise in popularity ofgreens. Although there is still a massive market for both, it is believed thatbroccoli will overtake the demand for cauliflower at one point.
The Polish market is a traditional one, with consumers quite often slow to moveaway from their well-known and trusted traditional vegetables.
"We tried Romanesco cauliflower last year, but it didn't work in thePolish market. Consumers tend to distrust different fruit and veg varietiesthan those they are familiar with, often suspecting them of being GMO. I thinkthat this is just the Polish mindset which tends to be very closed to things they do not know."
Producers continue to try introducingnew varieties and vegetables to the market. One producer is trialling yellowzucchini this year in the hopes that it will be embraced by Polish consumer.However, there are fears that consumers will be hesitant to try it, thinkingthat there is something wrong because of it having a different colour. They also tried introducing celery last season, a vegetable popular and widely used throughout the world, but consumers were not interested.
"Things do change here, but it is slow going and I think that with the newgovernment, there will be even more of a push for only wanting products whichare made and grown in Poland."
"I think that the change is likely to come a bit faster in the biggercities. However, I think that it is a process which will take years andyears."