"Since the beginning of January, there has been a lot of concern about shortages of cauliflowers, but supply seems to be slowly increasing again and prices are normalising. There seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. This gives some breathing space but I don't really dare make any predictions. The weather is not rational," says John Gijbels of Euro Gijbels.
"Anyway, we seem to be in a slightly different situation from other growers," continues the trader, who has their production site in Catalonia. "It seems we are in a good region, because we have been reasonably spared. We too have experienced about 30 to 40 per cent less production in the last month, but this is not too bad compared to others. Besides, the problems here are a bit later. We experienced shortages a bit later. Now, however, it seems a bit less for us again, where others have the necessary supply again."
The weather in Spain is now slowly but surely heading back towards the spring feeling. "However, it's not over yet. It remains slightly rainy and cloudy. Moreover, if the weather gets a bit softer, it doesn't mean that the supply will immediately return to normal levels. It remains volatile. For instance, cauliflower prices were also down for a while last Monday. We thought this would continue, but they almost doubled again towards the end of the week. The climate is so changeable that it is almost impossible to make sense of it."
"The same goes for celery, by the way. We will have shortages of these products for some time to come. Fortunately, our customers are understanding," John explains. "On top of that, sales have also been very quiet this week with the spring break. That's a stroke of luck. On the one hand, there are fewer supply problems then, but on the other hand, we don't want this to last too long either, of course."
The only product for which John's supply is starting to normalise somewhat again is leaf parsley. "This is the first product for which I see a relatively improved supply again next week. The rest will no doubt follow. However, I am holding my breath as to what this 'normal' price will be. After all, with last year's cauliflower prices, we just can't get our costs out this year. It sounds nice when you get a bit more, but at the end of the day we are left with less. Actually, this could be taken into account a bit more throughout the chain. These weeks show that growers are desperately needed."
For more information:
John Gijbels 
Euro Gijbels
Acaciastraat 21
2440 Geel – Belgium
Cami de les Arenes s/n
43300 Mont-roig del Camp
Tarragona - Spain
[email protected]
www.eurogijbels.be