The Dutch open ground vegetable season is getting off to a delayed start this year. "We have started slowly, but we are still a week to ten days later than other years," Robert Vogel of AGF-Direct from Zwaagdijk says. "The real numbers are not there yet, I hope we can offer them from June 10. For example, we had the first broccoli in today, but not yet in the sizes desired by the supermarkets."
René Verdonk in a broccoli field.
"Yesterday we got the first 'potted broccoli' in. There was a gap between winter and summer cauliflower. But the supply is still very limited. Qualitatively it is fine, but the first cabbages are not too heavy yet. In about ten days we will be moving toward normal numbers. Until then, it will remain a bit of a scramble," Robert expects.
"The French 
cauliflower season is coming to an end now. In France, cauliflower extremely expensive. Here, we started with price levels of between 1.60 and 2 euros for the 'sixes'. Iceberg lettuces are also doing fairly well. The transition to Spain and the Netherlands is often a bit messy, but prices between 6.50 and 7 euros are certainly acceptable."
Right: Growers Glory's pak choi
Additionally, AGF-Direct completes the open ground vegetable assortment with products such as pak choi, Romaine lettuce, followed by celery. "This way, we continue to look for additional products that add something to our range. Regarding the cauliflower and broccoli acreage, there haven't been big changes in recent years. Expanding is no longer an option; it is often quite a challenge to get the labor."
For more information:
Robert Vogel
AGF Direct
+31 (0)85 30 32 633
robert@agfdirect.nl
www.agfdirect.nl