According to Hans-Jürgen Filp of BayPack Vertriebs Ltd., the poor asparagus sales in 2022 not only impacted growers and retailers but also led suppliers such as packaging manufacturer BayPack to expect fewer orders for the 2023 season.
Ramona Schmid and Hans-Jürgen Filp at expoSE 2022.
"The marketing of our asparagus boxes has been postponed because asparagus producers had full warehouses, and there was hardly any outflow of goods. Accordingly, there are also fewer orders for the coming season," Filp said.
Cardboard packaging
"We mainly produce transport packaging for fruit and vegetable producers. In turn, we market fruit and vegetable boxes of the standard dimensions: 30x40 and 60x40 cm. They are used, among others, for products such as cucumbers, pumpkins, root vegetables such as parsnips, but also apples. In general, they are suitable for all kinds of heavier fruit and vegetable products," says Filp. The boxes, which are made exclusively from cardboard, are marketed throughout Germany, with plans to expand abroad as well, he says. BayPack sources the raw materials for the packaging from Germany.
Demand steady, prices stable despite high costs
"Raw material prices have risen immensely," Filp said. "Since we produce our own materials and electricity prices have tripled, we've had to adjust our prices as well. After all, the material is also very energy-heavy. However, there have been no price adjustments since the summer of 2022, they have been stable since then." The demand for the packaging is still there, however, he said. "Compared to previous years, there has not been much fluctuation in this either. However, we are seeing greater sales for returnable containers." There are no newer trends to be observed with regard to packaging, he said. Interest in existing products remains constant, he said.
Looking back at expoSE 2022
Larger trade shows, such as Fruit Logistica, are interesting, Filp said, but BayPack will no longer be there as an exhibitor. "We were no longer able to gain any new customers in Berlin; the market was basically saturated. Smaller trade fairs like expoSE are much more interesting for us because one can also get in touch with customers directly there. There were significantly fewer visitors on site in 2022, but the mood among growers was quite good," Filp recalls.
For more information:
Hans-Jürgen Filp
BayPack GmbH
Bahnhofstr. 30
87778 Stetten
Tel.: +49 (0) 82 61/73111-0
Fax.: +49 (0) 82 61/73111-50
E-Mail: info@baypack.eu
www.baypack.eu