With the first official harvesting by federal Agriculture Minister David Clarinval, the Conference season has kicked off after all. Van Haelst Fruit also started the harvest quietly, but from Monday, larger volumes will come out slowly but surely. "It's a nice period again. Although there was some fuss because I predicted there was going to be a harvest of around 80 per cent, we seem to be heading in that direction," Christophe Van Haelst of the eponymous cultivation company and VHM Fruit Trade tells us.
"Surely the general consensus at the end of last season was that the harvest was going to be a lot lower than other years," he continues. "By now, we can say that things are actually looking pretty good. Except for a few plots and regions that were hit a bit harder by the weather conditions in spring. We are heading for an 80-85 per cent harvest for the Netherlands and Belgium combined."
Quality is also above expectations, according to the grower/trader. "When there are a lot of pears on the tree, they don't really get big. Because there is a bit less fruit this year, they really grow out nicely, so the pears are a size thicker than other years. So you could say that the lower volumes have not even been that bad for the jigs. Of course, you can still see a tick here and there from the hail damage, but in itself it is not too bad. We will have to sell the minuscule ticks as class 1. Of course, there are some more severely affected pears, but overall it's going to be pretty good. So there are some fewer pieces, but in terms of kilos, I think we have an equivalent harvest."
About the start of the season, Christophe was a bit more doubtful. "Because the fruit spent some time in the cells at the end of last season, there was some reluctance among customers. Last year, the phones were red-hot early on, with people asking when we were going to start again. Not this year, but by now the phones are starting to ring. It should be emphasised that they are specifically asking for new harvest and not old harvest. It was also logical that it was a bit later, because people were left with old harvest with sufficient sugars for a long time and if you then start too soon with new harvest, which is not yet fully flavoured, you are in each other's way. Now, from 26 August, the new pears are really on flavour, and we can start with a nice product. If you started picking and marketing 15 August, first, they were not yet to taste and second, they were more expensive than the old crop. So people waited for a while, but now it's really picking up."
So, looking at the new season, he is generally quite positive. "I was convinced that we could enter the market nicely, with pretty good volumes, and it shows. Fortunately, there is no excess volume either. Rather a little too few than a little too many. Still, we have to be careful. Consumption continues to fall in recent years, so we will all have to work together in Europe to get this back up. Even now, in a season when people might have less trouble selling pears at good prices. Also now it is important to tap into new markets in addition, because in a year of high production we will see real price drops if nothing changes. With our high costs, that could be disastrous. It is therefore very important that we continue to find new markets and look at consumption together," Christophe concludes.
For more information:
Christophe Van Haelst
Van Haelst Fruit / VHM Fruit Trade
Kieldrechtsebaan 85
BE-9130 Verrebroek, Belgium
+32 (0)3 336 16 47
+32 (0)477 77 77 36
[email protected]
www.vanhaelstfruit.be