"Overall we have had a good season, with larger volumes and slightly higher prices compared to last year. The only problem is that the weather has caused some issues with softness, but overall, we are talking about a small portion of the entire harvest," shared Joanna Ratomska, CoRe CEO.
CoRe Fresh Supply is a Polish cooperative, made up of three medium sized growers located in various parts of Poland. One of the ideas behind the cooperative, which was formed in spring of 2016, was that by working together, they would be able to ensure a stable supply to customers, which has been very beneficial in terms of the weather issues this season. The weather around Poland varies enough that when one grower has soft berries due to rainy weather, the supply can still be covered by the other growers in the cooperative who are located different regions.
"We have started working with new customers in France, Belgium and Italy this season, which we are really positive about. So many Polish blueberry companies are entirely focussed on the UK and Holland, so I think it is a good for us to adapt and learn new ways of selling in other parts of Europe. We have started sending blueberries to France, Belgium and Italy where the transportation times are good and another big advantage is they are not oversupplied by other Polish companies," said Joanna.
Joanna said that all of the markets they supply seem to prefer the same type of packaging. Most of the blueberries are sent out in 125g-200g punnets or cartons.
"In general, the different markets all want the same thing, the best quality possible, which means avoiding having soft fruit. The most prevalent blueberry grown in Poland is the Bluecrop, but we also grow a lot of later varieties such as Aurora, Late Blue, Cargo and Last Call. Our growers have been busy this season testing new blueberry varieties and we have been implementing new late varieties to extend our season. Only time will tell how it all works out, but we are very positive," concluded Joanna.
For more information:
Joanna Ratomska
CoRe
[email protected]l
