"Problems with quality not restricted to Dutch carrots"

The new year has started quietly for carrot sales, after a reasonably lively trade in the late autumn. "We are in the process of switching from freshly harvested to cold-stored carrots. This means prices are rising, to which the market is reacting with caution", says Kees Heegsma, an open-field vegetable trader from Lemmer in the Netherlands. "The volumes sent to Africa at the end of last year are also decreasing. There is demand from various places in Europe, but as yet no large volumes have been ordered."

The carrot's quality varies. "The wet autumn has caused problems locally. Within a 10 km radius from us, there is a considerable variation in quality. This is due to the high amount of local autumn rainfall." Lower quality carrots also do not store well, making it more difficult to find buyers. "Supermarkets are not interested in these carrots. These issues with quality are not locally isolated. There are also problems in Northern Germany, and I have also learned that carrots were not even harvested in the Czech Republic. This, of course, offers opportunities for those with good quality, well-stored carrots."