Groceries are becoming more and more expensive, so consumers are no longer able to afford their money. The asparagus farmers are also feeling this at the moment. In addition, there are cheap imports from abroad.
According to the German Farmers’ Association, growers of asparagus and strawberries are coming under pressure in the middle of the current season due to extensive imports from food chains and a noticeable reluctance to buy.
“Larger quantities of cheap imported strawberries and asparagus push the prices down significantly. Our farmers simply can no longer keep up with these dumping prices, »said Farmer President Joachim Rukwied on Thursday of the German Press Agency. In addition, according to the association, consumers bought significantly less due to high inflation.
If farmers cannot sell their goods at reasonable prices, this puts a heavy burden on these farms. “We hear from farmers that they are no longer harvesting in some of their asparagus or strawberry fields. But you only do that if the harvest costs are higher than the proceeds from the sale,” the farmer president explained. He fears a decline in the area under cultivation for fruit and vegetables in the coming year, especially given the increase in the minimum wage to 12 euros. “We see the risk of production being shifted to European low-wage countries,” he said.
The Provincial Association of Rhineland Fruit and Vegetable Growers had previously complained that consumers were reluctant to buy asparagus, strawberries and many types of outdoor vegetables and reported a critical situation in the companies. The demand for asparagus in the region is around 20 to 30 percent lower than in the previous year. “The cold stores are full, sales are not going as desired,” said the deputy managing director of the regional association, Peter Muß. Asparagus is much cheaper than last year. He also referred to the competition from cheaper imported goods in the supermarkets, which were produced abroad at significantly lower wages and social standards.
