Tomatoes are so firmly embedded in daily eating habits that consumers ask for them all year round. The versatility of tomatoes and the wide range available explain their popularity. In order to meet the growing demand for tomatoes outside the traditional season, Belgian tomato producers are stepping up growing under lights.
At BelOrta, the total area taken up by tomatoes grown under lights has increased from 36 to 46 ha. There are seven Flandria products available in the ‘winter range’: Prince, Princess, Prunella, Elite, Baron, Ministar & Cherrystar. The Hoogstraten cooperative now has 60 ha of Specialties and Flandria-Princess in production in growing under lights, which represents a third of its total tomato acreage. At REO Veiling, growing under lights now also represents 30% of the acreage.