"Some of our producers have had zero production since the hail went down on their greenhouses, last week Sunday," says Anthony Langlais, General Manager of Kultive. Fortunately, the others have been spared. The damage was up to 70% for some French greenhouses and between 30 and 100% for others. For the moment, we are facing a 40 to 50% reduction in production over the week".
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Producers are on the front line to try and restore everything after the violent hailstorms of June 20 and 21. Among the most affected regions are the Centre-Val-de-Loire and the South-West. For the cucumber specialist Kultive, based in Loiret, the damage is substantial. "One of the two large greenhouse clusters south of Orleans, dedicated to the production of cucumbers and eggplants, has been badly damaged."
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2,500 glass panels per hectare for 27 hectares
"This week, we have to ensure the safety of the greenhouses because there are glass shards everywhere, assess the damage, and arrange for the experts to visit the site for insurance purposes. On average, we already estimate that between 2,000 and 2,500 glass panels per hectare have been damaged in the group's greenhouses, for a total of 27 hectares affected. It is still too early to put a figure on the damage, but just for the equipment, we are looking at several hundred thousand euros, not including cable installation and security.
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No return to normal before August
"We don't expect to return to normal production before mid-August, and even then, we won't be at 100% of our production. The problem lies in the availability of glass because roofers will be faced with an influx of demand for the same region, and labor must also be found. The second thing is that we need to find plants, and the nurseries don't produce them in a flash, so this will inevitably reduce our ability to return to our regular production capacity.
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Weather problems are becoming more and more frequent for growers who are already weakened by rising production costs. "We were hit by a tornado in early June. One of our eggplant producers had just finished his insurance file when the hail hit. The season is over for him because he needs two months of preparation. In total, we lost 60% of our eggplant production."
For more information:
Anthony Langlais
Kultive S.A.S.
190 allée du bois vert
45640 Sandillon, France
Phone : 02 38 49 33 49
Fax : 02 38 49 33 48
a.langlais@kultive.com
www.kultive.fr