The harvesting of fennel is ending in the Avezzano area while it is only just starting in Foggia.
The Avezzano area had instead to deal with many problems in September, in terms of both quantity and quality. Plants sown in June suffered a lot due to the hot temperatures in July and early August, leading to low yields. "This went on until 10th-12th October. Quality is now satisfactory, but demand, prices and consumption are low."
"Anyway things are rather normal at the moment. The late October-early November period has never been excellent. Consumption is not excessive and good quantities are available. After harvesting in Avezzano is over, early varieties from Puglia, Marche and Romagna become available and we just need to wait to see how the market responds."
A campaign difficult to interpret
"Up until 15 days ago, everyone would have said there was less produce available with high prices and excellent prospects. Now it's the exact opposite, but we don't know what happened. Maybe it's due to a previous excessive enthusiasm or by a current excessive panic, but it's still unjustifiable."
"This campaign was characterised by previously unseen extreme weather events and now we have to deal with what happened. We need to look back to understand what is happening now."
Rather than just being small, grades are rather uneven. "The campaign will last until 15th-20th December, then the winter campaign will continue (Termoli, Metaponto, Battipaglia, Tarquinia, Calabria). Anyway it's the weather that decides who survives or does not."
Crops dedicated to fennel remained rather stable, maybe with just a slight drop. "Over the past few years, however, new producers have chosen this crop."
The operator is hoping for a quiet campaign with fair quantities of high-quality produce. "This way, we can tackle the market calmly, supplying clients without big problems and working well."