This year, the Greek asparagus season starts much earlier than normal due to the weather. On Monday - some 10 days earlier than usual - the first lots from the southern growing region of Igoumenitsa arrived at the Munich wholesale market. "Despite the season, the demand is already there. At the end of the day, the goods were already completely sold out in the stand sales", describes Theo Hatzivassiliadis of exclusive supplier Hans Kuffer Fruchthandel LLC.
The fine weather in south-eastern Europe had accelerated the growth of the white gold and led to good product quality. As a result, all commercially available calibres are already available, confirms Hatzivassiliadis when asked. White as well as purple asparagus are offered either as 16+ in 500g bunches or 22+ in 5kg crates. The price level is roughly similar to last year at the beginning of the season. "We now receive fresh shipments twice a week and will deliver the first asparagus to retail outlets after the weekend."
Large demand due to sustainable product packaging
The main season does not start until week 9, after which Greek asparagus is usually available until week 18 (end of April). At this time of year, however, there is no mention of European competition: "Only Peru is currently on the market with larger quantities: compared to the Peruvians, the Greeks still have the advantage that their product packaging meets German requirements. While Peruvian products are still marketed in flowpacks and large plastic crates, the Greeks have long been marketing their asparagus loose in paper banderoles. German customers - whether in food retail or gastronomy - will prefer Greek asparagus simply because it is not packed in plastic".
