One month ago, Agence Laparra, which is based on the Rungis market, started marketing iceberg lettuce from Spain from its partner-producers Pozo. The Dutch origin will take over in May. “The campaign looks promising. The production and climate were good so we have a lot of volumes,” explains Eric Godard Durand, president of Agence Laparra.
Increase in sales of iceberg lettuce
The demand was slightly down during the school holidays, but it is still generally high for the iceberg lettuce. Agence Laparra is even seeing an increase in sales compared to the same period last year. This growth can be explained by the advantages offered by the products. “Clients are responsive, the quality of the product is good and we have really developed our sales. There is clearly a growing trend in recent years for the iceberg lettuce which is especially easy to prepare. It is a product that keeps very well and is easy to consume.” These are all very important criteria for consumers nowadays.
“Will consumers keep up with the rising costs?”
Despite a nice overall progress for the company since the beginning of the year, the wholesaler is worried, much like the majority of professionals, about the current context. “The figures are good, we are making good progress and we have a team that is young and dynamic. We are lucky to be able to work while having fun!,” explains Eric Godard Durand. “But we have rarely found ourselves in such an uncertain situation. I am mostly worried for our producers. If we do not find a way to add value to the products, the producers will suffer greatly. If consumers are not willing to pay more, we will not be able to help the producers. This increase in costs is huge! And the question we must ask ourselves is: will consumers keep up with the rising costs?”
