Similar to other winter vegetables, the cauliflower season 'wasn't a good season at all, according to Mr Jacq from Pierre Jacq. Due to the mild winter, consumers were turning to salads and there was less demand for winter vegetables. “The prices paid to the producers weren't right. The absence of winter meant that we had an important production faced with an average consumption.''
The mild winter badly affected prices which were ''very bad for producers and it is not good for us either to work with low prices''. Mr Jacq says that the price war between retailers in France means that they have to offer their products at the lowest possible price. The retailer is only interested in the ''low-priced raw product''.
The cauliflower season will end early this year, ''we estimate that we have maximum one more month this season for the winter varieties. They will end on the 15th May at the latest but the largest part of the season will be over by the end of the month''.
Breton cauliflower production is faced with competition throughout the winter from Spain and Italy - and even the South of France where production is increasingly present.
However, Mr Jacq says that the largest threat to French production is to ''discourage French production'' by paying such low prices. Yet he says that producers are not turning to other vegetables because cauliflower production is ''historic'' in the region. ''Last winter was a good season, this year is very bad - but we can never predict the future''. He finishes by saying that ''it is mainly the weather which decides whether it will be a good season or not'', and who can predict the weather?!
