"May 10th is a symbolic date for us," explains Patrick Larrere of Fermes Larrere. The day marks the start of the carrot season, the farm's flagship product, which will last 11 months.
"Except for the 3 days of nice weather of the past weekend, we are still under a lot of water. In some areas of the Landes region, up to 1,800 mm of water has fallen since mid-October. This week, we began marketing our first early carrots, both organic and conventional. So far, all our clients (wholesalers, supermarkets and manufacturers) are switching to the French origin. The rainy, cool and damp weather contrasts sharply with the past three years, when this time of year was marked by sun and warm temperatures.
Despite the atypical weather, Patrick Larrere is quite satisfied with the start of the season. "We are pleasantly surprised by the quality. Our product is smooth, with good calibers. We only miss some root length, which could affect yields over part of the season."
The slightly weaker supply is nonetheless meeting a fairly sustained demand. "The demand is quite high at the start of the season. The big question now is what the weather will be like over the next 2 to 3 weeks, as it will obviously influence production. But from June onwards, we should see normal volumes for the season." The upside is that this potential imbalance between supply and demand could lead to fairly decent prices for the start of the campaign, which "should compensate for this season's lower yields."
For more information:
Patrick Larrere
Fermes Larerre
Domaine du Douc
40410 Liposthey
Phone: +33 5 58 82 39 64
Fax: +33 5 58 82 39 98
[email protected]