In Belgium, Coöperatie Hoogstraten's strawberry season officially started on Friday. The first strawberry box was auctioned In the presence of the press and interested parties. Marketing Manager Jan Engelen looked back and ahead. "It was a particularly challenging year," he begins. read more

The 2023 International Blueberry Organization (IBO) Summit will be taking place on July 3-6 in Poland, in the scenic city of Lublin – the capital of the main Polish soft fruit production region. read more

Freshfel Europe’s latest edition of the Consumption Monitor indicates that the average fruit and vegetable consumption in the EU grew to 364,58 g/day/capita in 2021. However, this positive trend that started during the pandemic has already been curbed by the economic crisis caused by the
read more

A 19th-century Irish adventurer and explorer is credited with introducing the potato to Greece shortly after it won its independence from the Ottoman Empire. read more

From 3 rd to 5 th May, Macfrut 2023, to be held in Rimini (Italy), will become an international meeting point for nursery professionals, breeders, producers, technicians and researchers. There will be five refresher seminars covering the latest results regarding genetic improvement in fruit
read more

Fruit and vegetable research is increasingly moving towards 'pesticide-free' fields, yet the demand for EU plant variety rights has remained constant for the past five years in Europe and is even declining by 8.2% in 2022. Apart from a 17% drop in
read more

The family businesses Rathgeb Bio and Kellermann Gemüsekulturen have decided to shape their future together from April 2023. The two sustainability pioneers Christian Rathgeb and Martin Kellermann share common values and traditions. All previous fields of activity and locations of both company
read more

"In recent years, the appetite for avocados in Germany and surrounding countries has been increasing," says Paulina Criticos (pictured right), CEO of Westfalia Fruit Group - EMEA region. "We have experienced a strong growth over the past year. We have achieved this with both existing and new
read more

Top 10 supermarket retail chains in Germany read more

Norwegian police officials have made the largest-ever cocaine seizure in the nation when they discovered 800 kilograms of the drug in boxes of fruit in Oslo. According to Norwegian news agency NTB, the drugs were found this week following a tipoff from German police. Police didn’t disclose the
read more

For Dutch onions, the 2022-2023 export season will undoubtedly be remembered as a historic one, says the Holland Onion Association. It will not reach a record, volume-wise, but in terms of value, Dutch onion export sales could well, for the first time ever, top €500 million. read more

Plant-based diets are becoming more and more popular and, as a result, the consumption of pulses, a source of iron and protein, is also increasing. The product range can thus also be expanded to make it more attractive and tasty. This is the case with Mr. Beans, the new 100% Italian legume snack
read more

In view of the complex situation for organic apples in Europe, representatives of the associations of apple producers in France and Italy agreed in a meeting to set up a working group. read more

Protests and demonstrations against the pension reform proposed by President Emmanuel Macron, which provides for an increase in the retirement age from 62 to 64 years, are still rampant in France. The French are experiencing difficult weeks, with major disturbances, clashes and violence in
read more

After more than 40 years in business, Patricia and Roland Gugger have decided to hand over their wholesale vegetable business called Gugger-Guillod SA. Eight vegetable producers from the region are jointly taking over the management of the Sugiez-based company. These are Adam Gemüse from
read more

Spain is Brazil’s fifth-largest export market. The Iberian nation held a 2.9% share of Brazilian exports in 2022, the highest percentage since the start of the historical series in 1997. But according to Xiana Méndez, secretary of Spain’s commerce and head of ICEX España Exportación e
read more

According to official information, the phytosanitary protocol for the export of Spanish almonds and persimmons to China was signed during the visit of the Spanish government president Pedro Sánchez to Beijing (week 13). read more

“At the end of February 2023, the stocks of French apples were down compared to last year (-11%). With the exception of the Pink Lady, all varieties saw their stocks decrease. Prices are above those of 2021 and the five-year average. As the end of the marketing year approaches, pear stocks are
read more

Faced with a particularly delicate economic situation for the organic apple sector in Europe, the representative structures of the Italian and French business organisations wanted to engage collectively in a reflection on the future. read more