The current strawberry supply in Belgium is not at a large volume. “Hoogstraten has about 20 tonnes per auction day, and other auctions have mostly already finished with strawberries.” Until a few weeks ago, prices have been extremely high. “They decreased, but as of today, they are back at a high level,” says Eddy Corijn from Demargro.
Not widely available
Corijn says the wait is now for illuminated cultivations. “The old cultivations are also no longer the best quality, you really have to search for that. Besides, strawberries are not widely available to traders or exporters. The majority of what is now being supplied, is meant for supermarkets. And those are mostly the larger sizes. The small ones that are still available, are mainly for other buyers.” In general, demand is currently low at wholesaler’s markets, according to Corijn. This is partly caused by the import of foreign strawberries. “We still have some buyers in France, some retail, but it is a fairly calm period. Interest will probably increase as we are headed towards the holidays.”
High prices
About 14 days ago, the price level was very high, and strawberries sold quickly. “Even small C1 strawberries sold at 3 euro per 500 gramme-punnet then. The B sortings were sold between 4 euro and 4.50. Prices decreased, but then increased again. Yesterday (6 December), AA-extra sold at 4.85, and A at 4.75. Today saw another increase, up to 5.40.”
