Both loose tomato and TOV average prices rose sharply last week at the Belgian Horticultural Cooperatives Association's auctions. Cucumber prices fell for the second consecutive week, while bell pepper prices remain stable across the board.
Tomato prices, which hovered around the five-year average for a while, are moving away from that. The average kilogram price of over €1.74 for loose tomatoes is higher than the already high 2022 prices. At €1.65, vine tomatoes are approaching that price level too.
For cucumbers, 2023 has not been good, price-wise. In the first eight months, prices fell by 33%, the sector association Boerenbond calculated last week when prices sank to an average unit price of just more than €0.27.
Bell pepper prices peaked sharply in later summer but began declining. Last week, VBT average prices for red and yellow bell peppers remained stable. Across the board, the median price is at €0.944/kg. Lower than in 2021 and 2022 but on par with the five-year average.
Lettuce prices are up for the second week in a row, which, in week 41, resulted in an average price of €0.47 per head. That brings that price in line with the traditional price increase and keeps lettuce prices level with the five-year average.
The persistent warm nights are playing havoc with strawberry cultivation. Quality has been a challenge for growers. Fall, however, has begun in earnest, bringing the preferred cold nights. Prices, unlike temperatures, have found their way up. For the first time since mid-August, the median price is truly climbing above the five-year average.
You can see all these figures on www.vlaanderen.be/landbouwcijfers