Belgian fruit and vegetable producer Greenyard has reported a 4.4% jump in sales in the first quarter of the year, despite challenging weather conditions for growers across Europe.
However, the company's CEO Francis Klint warned that customers will see produce become more expensive and harder to find, as a result of "weather fluctuations".
Greenyard saw like-for-like net sales rise by 4.4% in the first quarter, from €1.28 billion to €1.34 billion. The company said that this was driven by higher sales volumes and increased service sales, and only a slight increase in prices of 0.6% "despite challenging weather conditions across Europe".
In the first quarter of 2024, Greenyard's fresh produce sales rose by 3.8% to €1.05 billion, while its "long fresh" segment (frozen products and those that can be stored at room temperature) saw sales rise by 7.1% to €243.8 million.
The strong first quarter follows record sales for the company in 2023, which surpassed €5 billion for the first time in Greenyard's 40-year history.
Francis Kint, Greenyard CEO, said the company is pleased to see continued growth in both its fresh and long fresh segments.
However, he warned that customers could still see produce become scarce and more expensive in future, due to changing weather conditions. Farmers in Belgium have reported a poor crop yield this summer, the result of record rain earlier this year.
"Our industry is experiencing the impact of weather fluctuations firsthand. While growers and the industry are continuously adapting to these ever-changing dynamics of agriculture, also the customer will notice these effects in the future, amongst others through scarcity or higher prices," said Kint.
Listed on Euronext Brussels, the global fruit and vegetable producer employs around 8,600 people across 23 countries. It was established in 2015 through the merger of Univeg, Pinguin, Noliko and Peltracom. The Belgian Deprez family, who originally founded Univeg in 1987, still holds the controlling 37.7% share of Greenyard.
