About 3 weeks ago, the harvest of the first early carrots started in Limburg and this week the southwest of the Netherlands is making a start. However, the current prices are disappointing.
The carrot harvest in Limburg is almost complete. Because old carrots still came from the refrigerator, the harvest was pushed further back. That has not done the quality of the b-peen any good. Now that the carrot harvest has also started in the southwest of the country, washing companies are preferring this carrot, which is of better quality for export overseas. The first indications of irrigated plots in Zeeland point to a yield of approximately 55 to 60 tons per hectare.
Grower does not come from costs
The situation is putting pressure on the market. Traders from the country talk about prices that vary between 5 and 9 cents per 100 kilos. That is not enough to cover the costs. A consequence of the previous bad storage season in terms of prices, as a result of which the market was fed up with old carrots for too long and everything had to move on.
Better prices later in season
Although the quality and yield of the early carrots say nothing about the main crop, traders are cautiously optimistic about the rest of the season from the market. Due to the poor turnout, where Boerenbusiness June 22 wrote about, they are not counting on a top yield. Over-sown plots will not achieve those volumes anyway. It is possible that only 60 percent of normal production is achieved. As a result, pricing appears to be looking healthier than in previous years.
Favorable weather
The weather conditions are favorable at the moment. There are fewer plants per hectare, but these are now enjoying favorable weather. In Germany, carrot crops appear to be doing well on average. In Belgium, the situation is more variable.
Perfect conditions after 6mm to keep track of the #carrot to toss and turn #harvest17 #field pic.twitter.com/tmztqb9jac
— Wilbert Kate (@MtsKaat) July 7, 2017
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