Dutch company The Greenery says fresh redcurrant production is rising in the Netherlands, with the introduction of new packaging formats apparently helping to grow sales of the fruit.
“In recent years, we have seen 300g packs become popular,” revealed Marcel van Lith, senior sales executive at the group. “Previously, redcurrants were mainly supplied in 500g during the summer, but for consumers this packaging is often too big, while 125g is too small to sell volume.”
Welcoming what he said had been a strong start to this year’s campaign, Van Lith revealed that The Greenery’s own redcurrant volumes were increasing, especially among those of supplier partners that specialised in growing the product.
Harvesting has been underway for a few weeks and has now progressed from glasshouse to polytunnel production.
'The quality of the redcurrants is excellent this year,” Van Lith added. “Due to the warm spring, the taste is extra good this year. In contrast with last year, there has been no night frost this year, which means there will be sufficient kilos available in the coming period.”
The bulk of the marketer’s redcurrant deal is stored and sorted centrally by Schalkwijk Soft Fruit Company near Utrecht, which recently inagurated a new packing and storage facility.
“This means you can always respond flexibly to the demand in the market,” Van Lith explained. “The new modern coldstore is one of the most advanced in the world for storing berries. The best quality can be guaranteed, because it is run year round by people who know the product inside out.”
Over the coming months, redcurrants are largely a domestic business for The Greenery, but import partners in other key markets are expected to turn to the Netherlands once again after August, when their own summer supplies have been sold.
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