Tomato prices are up, and cucumber prices are down. Both price trends are in line with the "normal." More and more cucumbers are entering the market as spring approaches, and in unexposed tomato crops, fruits are also starting to color more frequently, if growers are not already in production.
Thanks to the recent price rise, the average price for loose tomatoes has risen to over €2.46 per kilo at the auctions of the Federation of Belgian Horticultural Cooperatives. This now puts the price back above the five-year average. The average price for vine tomatoes rose to €2.09 per kilo in week 11. This is still lower than the five-year average. . Several crops, including San Marzano, are back in production.
In a market update, Farmers' Union points out that tomatoes are performing "exceptionally well" due to reduced imports from North Africa and Spain, where tomato virus and abundant rainfall are limiting production. "Loose tomatoes quote up to €3/kg, vine tomatoes hover around €2/kg due to Dutch competition. Specialties are doing well thanks to limited supply and rising demand with the first spring sunshine. From the end of March, all tomato varieties will again be available locally, with production gradually picking up again."
The middle price for cucumber is at 36.4 euro cents each at the end of week 11. This puts the middle price in line with last year, but below the five-year average. Dutch retail saw price stunts last week. However, the cucumber market is under pressure due to acreage expansion after a strong year, combined with Spanish imports, Boerenbond notes. "At 0.35 euros/piece, prices remain moderate."
Cautiously, the first colors of peppers are also coming off the plant. Yellow, red, and orange follow green. For now, the average price for all colors combined at FBT is higher than in recent years. Again, the Farmers' Union points to reduced Spanish supplies. Eggplants, where Spain is also a competitor, are struggling with disappointing demand, leaving the price at €0.80/kg, well below average.
The average price for head lettuce came to 43 euro cents per head at the end of week 11. The average price for head lettuce is now back at the level of the five-year average. This is the first time this has been the case since January. Nevertheless, the price here is below the profitability threshold, Boerenbond notes. The same goes for lamb's lettuce, where the kilogram price is around €2.50.
The middle price for strawberries drops slightly to 10.13 euros per kilo in week 11. Around this time, strawberry prices traditionally drop. By the end of March, many growers expect to be back in full production from an unexposed crop.
Want to see the price charts wholesale? You can do so on agriculture figures page of the Flemish Ministry of Agriculture & Fisheries.