© Hugo Huijbers | HortiDaily.comAs with many other products, the German herb season is now drawing to a close. "Winter is starting noticeably later than usual this year. It stayed warm for a very long time, which is why regional herbs could be harvested well into the fall. However, we are now slowly kicking off the Spanish import season with the first test shipments of parsley, dill, cilantro, and mint grown there," explains Philippe Kahn (right), herb importer and managing director of Herbafrucht GmbH, based in Munich's Großmarkthalle.
In addition to the seasonal procurement of Spanish products, Kahn offers his customers goods of Italian origin as well as air-freighted herbs from Ethiopia and Kenya year-round. "Availability is consistently good, but air freight charges have risen on average by 30–50% since the beginning of the year, in some cases by nearly 100% compared to last year. This, in turn, has meant that air-freighted herbs have become about 10% pricier for us overall. Given the rise in market prices, Southern European produce is likely to become somewhat more attractive to some customers."
© Herbafrucht GmbH
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