A period of stark shortage of cauliflower in the UK market is giving way to oversupply.
After several weeks of a dearth of cauliflower in the UK, with prices climbing and suppliers turning to mainland Europe to fulfil orders, the market now looks like it is heading down and broccoli is set to follow the same trend.
Simon Martin of QV Foods said: “Cauliflower has been quite tight. It can often happen at this time of year as weather patterns can be so variable. The result is that you do get a bit of a gap.”
Packers for the supermarkets have been looking to France and even Germany to fill the gaps.
Peter Davis of Davis (Louth) Ltd said: “Cauliflower has been a bit of a disaster. We have had to import and we are losing a fortune on it. Cauli from Germany has been up at 850p for 8s, but now English product is back on stream and prices have plunged. This week you can’t get 30p a head ex-farm and the product is all coming on at once. It is a continuous cycle of feast and famine and it is happening too often.”
Davis warned that the situation will be repeated on broccoli all too soon. He said: “ I expect another week of shortage of broccoli. We are having to subsidise the cost to customers and are bringing in from Germany and France, but the French quality has not been good.” Dry conditions in France have affected the crop and as a result broccoli has developed problems with hollow stems.
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