«The first Belgian blueberries arrive to an almost empty market»
The Belgian family business Kwekerij Mulders combines the cultivation of tomatoes and blueberries. A strange combination? Gert Mulders, sales manager, doesn't see it that way. “My parents started growing tomatoes 30 years ago. We started with three hectares of tomatoes, but were unable to expand our greenhouse cultivation due to location. That's why we started looking for another crop and opted for blueberries."
At that time there were only two blueberry growers in the Flemish region of El Campine, and after consultation with the Coöperatie Hoogstraten auction, where we also sell our tomatoes, we started growing blueberries. In the tomato greenhouse, we grow an early variety of blueberries in substrate. In another location we have 1,5 hectares of open-air cultivation. "We currently have 1,7 hectares of blueberries in total and can supply from the beginning of July to the beginning of October."
Little product of southern Europe in the market
“We have just started harvesting the early varieties. Prices are good, but currently declining a bit. There are currently few volumes from southern Europe on the market, which is positive for the Belgian blueberry. There have been some hail storms in recent weeks, but our crop is fully protected. Because everything is completely covered, we can guarantee superior quality and continue harvesting throughout the entire season. All our berries are hand picked. “In this way they maintain the prune, a sign of freshness,” says Gert.
"When the berries begin to take color at the beginning of July, we started to use the birdnet nets too. We have also installed a tall stick with a hawk nest. These ensure that the rest of the birds stay away. People love blueberries, but also birds. In addition, we are fully equipped with an automatic irrigation system that also provides the right nutrients to the plants. In this way we try to optimize the quality and taste of the berries. In the periods of greatest occupation we have a lot of harvest work. We have a good team of about thirty people to be able to carry it out. "
Elite
After a bad period in the tomato market, prices rose again to 80 cents two weeks ago. Current prices are falling again and are at a price level of 64 cents. “However, we don't know what the market will do. Last week there was a great demand from France. They bought everything in a week, but it was a one-off thing,” says Mulders. Kwekerij Mulders grows vine tomatoes of the Elite variety. “In addition, we grow a few rows of cherry tomatoes, but we sell them from our own vending machine. In Belgium we have Elite and Princes tomatoes. "We have opted for the Elite, because they have a more attractive color and the flavor is a little more refined."
«Local harvest»
Kwekerij Mulders and four other blueberry producers in the El Campine region have recently launched a campaign called Local Harvest under the slogan “no food waste”. «At the end of the harvest, we will freeze the smallest and unsaleable berries, and later process them to make fruit juices, wines and other products. We want to offer this type of products throughout the year with the main objective of reducing the amount of waste. We also do home sales. We have tomato and blueberry vending machines in our facilities. Both of our facilities are close to a cycle route and more and more cyclists know how to find our machines,” concludes Gert.
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