Optimism is high for the new Belgian Conference pear season. Whereas last year's harvest was disappointing, this year's volumes are much higher, and the general consensus is that quality is excellent. Nevertheless, Tony Derwael of Bel'Export warns that challenges are looming. "Many have underestimated the season. Both in terms of harvest timing and volume, they are surprised by the number of kilos, and much of it is not being picked on time."
"So far, the new Belgian and Dutch pear season looks very promising," explains the trader from Flemish Borgloon. "Yet I fear that soon about a third of the harvest will be picked too late. That is worrying, because pears that are not picked this week will become overripe. That will create pressure on the market. I advise growers who are harvesting late to get their pears sold before the New Year. They need to sell immediately, otherwise we will continue to feel that pressure throughout the season."
Not wanting too much
Tony, therefore, issues a warning. "I think people should start considering whether they are planting too much. Pears have to be harvested within a three-week window. In some years, even two. It is therefore important not to plant more than can be harvested within that time. Many growers keep replanting, but then everything has to grow along with it: labour, equipment, storage. In many cases, that isn't happening, and mistakes are made, which can cost everyone money."
Does the trader fear that these pears will haunt the market throughout the season? "It certainly doesn't have to go that far, but we simply have to be careful not to want too much. I have been in the industry for more than 45 years. I used to know families with nine children who had 10 hectares of pears. They could make a very decent living from that. The children could all study, but now everyone wants bigger and bigger. There are huge investments to save on labour, but people forget to ask whether they can manage it in terms of capacity. It doesn't have to be a problem; if you can handle it, that's just fine. But some can handle 100 hectares, while others already struggle with 10. You have to be realistic and ask yourself how many hectares you can manage well."
Luck in southern Europe as an export destination
Still, Tony stresses that the problem is not general overproduction, but rather production ending up in the wrong hands. "In fact, there is no question of oversupply. We are fortunate that southern Europe is withdrawing from pear cultivation. As a result, we can still get a euro today. Italy and Spain produce much less than they did 30 years ago. By comparison, Italy at the time, as Europe's largest pear producer, had around 700,000 tonnes. That's as much as Belgium and the Netherlands together produce today. In addition, European pear production in general has declined sharply in the last few decades, so we still have a good disposal of pears."
"New export markets are not yet a necessity," he says in response to the growing search for new destinations. "But it is certainly wise to develop them in the long run. We will also have years with much higher production, and young plantings are coming into production quickly. To be prepared for that future, it is good to have marketing space. For now, despite declining consumption, we have no problems with oversupply. That is why it is heartbreaking to see that a third will be picked too late. Such a shame for the fruit of such high quality. Quality is exactly what we need to focus on to keep consumers engaged. I hope everyone will pay attention to this in the coming years."
For more information:
Tony Derwael
Bel'Export
Neremstraat 2
3840 Borgloon - Belgium
Tel +32 12 440 551
[email protected]
www.belexport.com