Retail sales and consumption remain unchanged. There is good demand for pre-pack quality material. With the favourable weather the past two weeks there has been significant headway made with harvest. A lot of progress has been made in the North East. Yields again are reported to be variable across the country. Some fields recovered well post drought conditions, however, some unirrigated fields never recovered. Once again, like across all sectors, the cost of doing business dominates most discussions at present, especially considering next years plantings.
Across Europe, there is still ‘ex field’ loading but lifting is now 90% complete and the yield reductions are now plainly visible. In the processing sector, loading contracts is still a priority and free buy is still of limited interest but one major buyer has increased their base price this week. In the U.K. there is very little pressure from growers to sell but buyers are trying harder to reduce ex farm prices for all but the best.
