"We produce around seven million Bioland potted herbs a year, mainly for the food retail trade, but also for garden centers and wholesalers," reports Henrik Fleischmann, production manager at Bioland KräuterGut Dworschak-Fleischmann, during an on-site interview at the modern herb nursery in the heart of Nuremberg's garlic-producing region. They started out almost 30 years ago by switching from fruiting vegetables to classic culinary herbs. "Now, our range includes around 240 different types of herbs, of which we offer 60 to 80 varieties permanently throughout the year."
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Henrik Fleischmann is the company's production manager and runs the horticultural business together with his mother and boss Tanja and his brother Patrik.
The main season traditionally starts at Easter. Fleischmann: "Last year, the herb business was quite good until the middle of the year, then came the turning point and sales slowed down a bit until the end of the year, which in turn was due to several factors, above all the reduction in purchasing power. According to market studies, the natural food trade in particular has suffered, while there has been strong growth in the discount sector. What is definitely causing us problems as horticultural businesses are the exorbitant increases in energy and labor costs."
Basil pots in the so-called double-decker system, which was implemented 15 years ago (FreshPlaza reported). The company currently employs over 100 permanent staff from 17 different nations, around 75 of whom work at the main site in Nuremberg/Kraftshof. Around a third of them are employees who are difficult to place, and who receive intensive support here.
Due to the change in purchasing behavior, sales, i.e. the volume purchased per customer, have declined noticeably. Fleischmann: "However, we are in the fortunate position of having seen a significant increase in customer numbers over the past two to three years, enabling us to almost compensate for this decline in sales. The classics basil (approx. 50 percent of total production), flat-leaf and curly parsley, chives, rosemary, and mint continue to perform best, although we also have to differentiate here. The discounters usually have a single-variety box of basil and a mixed box that is filled with different types of herbs depending on the season, while the full-range retailers usually offer a wider range of potted herbs with a wide variety of individual varieties and mixed boxes."
The group of companies consists of four locations in total: in Nuremberg, western Poland as well as Kitzingen Geisspitze and Fuchsberg. Rosemary is mainly produced in western Poland. In addition, the company Bio Maintal Kresse was integrated into the company in 2023. Around 12 million pots of cress and sprouts are produced here every year.
Meanwhile, the wide range of products offered by the herb company is constantly being adapted to changing customer needs and kitchen trends, continues Fleischmann. "For example, we offer both Chinese and Vietnamese coriander, which are both very popular. Other new products that we have recently added to our portfolio include cheese leaf and lemon leaf. Meanwhile, I can't think of any variety that has lost much of its importance, which is a sign that the entire range of herbs has its right to exist," he concludes.
For the past five years, the company has been relying on sustainable recycled Teku pots from Pöppelmann, which are made from recycled plastic packaging. As a result of the legislation, the peat content of the substrate required for cultivation has already been reduced to 40 percent. A further reduction to 30 percent would theoretically already be possible. Otherwise, the plant is equipped with a closed water cycle and trials are now being conducted with LED lighting.
For more information:
Henrik Fleischmann
Bioland KräuterGut Dworschak-Fleischmann
Moosfeldweg 8
90427 Nuremberg / Kraftshof
Tel: 0911 / 93 64 76 -1
Fax: 0911 / 93 64 76 -0
info@kraeutergut.de
www.kraeutergut.de