Dutch fruit tree nurseries expect a shortage of fruit trees and rootstocks in the coming years.
Fewer fruit trees have been produced in recent years as a result of international market developments. Tree sales to Eastern Europe, for example, have declined in recent years, and sales in Russia and Ukraine stopped due to the war.
The decline in the production of planting material is reflected in figures from Naktuinbouw. In 2020, 11.8 million apple trees and half-products were certified by the inspection body. In 2023, these were only 7.9 million. In pear, the number of trees certified by Naktuinbouw fell from 3.9 million in 2020 to 3 million in 2023. The total number of cherry trees fell from 1 million in 2020 to 675,000 in 2023. In addition, 15% of the area of stoolbeds was taken out of production.
The rapidly changing range of apple varieties and sharply increased production costs make it increasingly difficult for fruit tree growers to produce fruit trees at their own risk. Fruit growers who want to be assured of high-quality fruit trees in the coming years will have to order them early.
(This text has been translated by translation software)