The current market for outdoor vegetables is not outstanding. Apart from savoy cabbage - which continues to be affected by quality problems - stability and continuity characterize the German vegetable market in January. The situation is different with imported vegetables, because the cold wave in the important cultivation regions in France (Brittany) and Spain led to large price increases at present, explains Silvia Kersting, sales manager of Plug packaging.
Consistency for German open field vegetables
The open field cultivation of the wholesale company, currently delivers kale, Chinese cabbage, savoy cabbage, celeriac, corn salad, parsley and parsnips. The availability of goods is currently satisfactory across the entire regional vegetable range: "As long as we do not have any frost, we will still have normal quantities available. Of the varieties currently harvested, yields are in the normal range."
In terms of prices, the majority of the assortment is within the normal range as well and there have not been significant developments since December. "For lamb's lettuce, of course, the Christmas and New Year's Eve demand was very high, which has now eased a bit. But there is somewhat less on offer, which is why the prices remain stable overall."
White flies harming savoy cabbage
With the majority of stored goods such as Chinese cabbage, the current product quality is in order, according to the sales department. For the regional savoy cabbage, it is a difficult season. "Producers already have had problems with white flies in cultivation throughout the campaign. The campaign in Germany is not yet completed, but we are drawing significantly more from Italy and France. I also believe that we have to write off the last lots in this area.''
Rapid price increases for cauliflowers
Apart from the import of savoy cabbage, the cauliflower is currently sourced exclusively from abroad, primarily from Spain and the French region of Brittany. Currently, the ratings for popular calibers (6-er) have moved to 9-10 euros per box. "Last week, the cauliflower prices have risen quite a lot, because it has become very cold in both growing regions. As a result, the availability of goods has also declined correspondingly with consistent quality. In the past, it was once so that goods from Brittany on Spanish products was preferred, currently hold the conditions about the balance," concludes Kersting.
For the next week there might also be a commodity shortage. However, by the end of the month it is expected that the market will stabilize somewhat again.
