Consumers want their vegetables and fruit to be regional, fresh and aromatic. Fair prices are an important argument for farms in Bavaria. They see joint marketing as a major plus for negotiations with the food trade at an equal level. In Bavaria, the Bavarian State Institute for Agriculture (LfL) is responsible for recognizing and advising these so-called producer organizations in the fruit and vegetable sector.
To ensure that smaller family farms like the Böhm family from Albertshofen with their Franconian tomatoes are seen on the market and have a chance, there is the possibility of joining together to form recognized producer organizations. Under the umbrella of the Main-Donau Horticultural Center, farmers from the Gundelfingen an der Donau area have joined forces with farmers from Albertshofen in Lower Franconia. Carrots, tomatoes, as well as cabbage, lettuce, and fine and stem vegetables are grown on the more than 700 hectares of open-air land. This enables Bavarian growers to offer their customers a wide range of products with a high degree of supply security throughout the growing season.
Cooperative cultivation
Three recognized producer organizations are currently active in the fruit and vegetable sector in Bavaria on behalf of their total of around 600 growers. In addition to the Main-Donau Horticultural Center, "GEO Bayern" bundles the cultivation of pickling cucumbers in Lower Bavaria, and "Franken Obst" collects and markets cherries and plums from the stone fruit growing regions in Franconian Switzerland. In such an organization, farmers form a strong community. They plan their production together and bundle the supply for collective marketing, thus achieving an improvement in their market position.
In the fruit and vegetable sector, support for producer organizations extends to promoting initial processing and packaging. Particular attention is paid to promoting measures with a positive environmental impact, such as reducing the use of pesticides. Farmers who want to find out about the requirements for recognition should contact the LfL's Institute of Food Economics and Markets.
For more information: lfl.bayern.de