It is not yet the summer Belgian wholesalers would have liked. The overcast, wet weather is not making things easier on both supply and demand sides at a time when the fruits should normally be picked. "It has been difficult. The last two weeks of June we had the weather we would have liked to have all spring and worked well, but after that it fell back again and, on top of that, the holidays started," Ellen and Nathalie Sebrechts of Sebrechts Groenten en Fruit told us.
"It started as early as spring," Ellen continues. "That has not been what everyone had hoped for from it, which also means everything remains a bit more expensive. Berries, strawberries. Cherries, which are very popular here in Belgium, were not there at all. Cherries are in very short supply and therefore remain expensive. It is starting to get a bit better now, but we are already in the Regina. That's early, isn't it. The season, I fear, will also be done a bit earlier as a result."
"The open ground strawberries also suffered from the rain, which obviously didn't do the quality any good. Moreover, there was a high demand, because some supermarkets went into promotion. As a result, we saw abnormal prices, which we have never had before at this time of the year. It makes it a difficult summer season for us. The fluctuating prices are very dangerous and apart from paying a lot, there is also no quality for long storage. We therefore have to pay very close attention to what we buy."
Storm throws a spanner in the works
Whereas fruit is more Ellen's speciality, the vegetable segment lies more with her sister, and co-manager, Nathalie. However, as many know, there have also been major problems here. "Last Tuesday's heavy storm in the Mechelen region and surrounding areas really wreaked havoc on open-grown vegetables. On Wednesday it actually wasn't too bad at the auction, but now we can see the consequences for beans, for example. Very many hectares have been destroyed, leaving growers unable to deliver trade for the next 4–5 weeks. That of course drives up the price enormously, but on top of that it is terrible for those people."
"It also applies to other produce outside," she continued. "Cauliflowers, fennel. There is almost no more product available from the fields. We will really have to wait and see what it will all do to prices. In beans, it might go down again when Dutch and machine beans start, but right at the time of conversion, this is happening. That has an impact on everything, and so these problems will continue for the next few weeks. Normally the price goes through half during this period, but there is no question of that now."
Slow sales
Still, besides the problems in availability of Belgian product, there is a steady supply in imports. "Surely, runners-up always remain stone fruit and melons in this period," Ellen adds. "Nectarines are top and peaches are also of a nice quality. In addition, if you look carefully you can always find nice batches of cherries, so it is certainly not all misery. There is also still a lot of nice product available. Spanish melons are coming in now and, with the nice weather of the last few days, that always finds its way to the consumer. We also always look for special items, such as white cherries or yellow watermelons. It is nice if such an item is included, because it colours your stall. Yet we see that in this period, people don't always want to take the risk and prefer to stay for the reliable, well-known products."
Consequently, the wholesaler does notice the effects of the holiday period. "We briefly had the weather at the end of June that we had actually wanted all spring, but after that the holidays started right away. You see market traders taking turns to go on holiday, but in general, demand always slows down a bit from 1 July onwards, after which everything starts up again at the end of August when the holidays are over and the new Belgian hard fruit arrives on the market."
"It's no different," the sisters argue. "We simply work in a very weather-dependent sector. No year is the same, and this year the weather is unfavourable. Next year, it could all be different again. For now, it won't knock us out either, because it's still wonderful to work with all those delicious fruits and vegetables. Moreover, we have a new website, where we post our new items and give people information about the products. You really notice that it catches on and invites people to try new products. Especially in these times, when everything is less personal, we see that it is the way to connect people with your product and inform them about new possibilities. Now, if the weather also cooperates a bit, we can move on to better times soon," Ellen smiles.
For more information:
Ellen and Nathalie Sebrechts
Sebrechts Groenten & Fruit
Kielsbroek 4
2020 Antwerp, Belgium
+32 32374192
[email protected]
www.sebrechtsfruit.be