German Soft Fruit Yield Up 17% In 2013

Berries were cultivated on 7,300 hectares in Germany in 2013. This was an increase in area of 7%. Th…

Berries were cultivated on 7,300 hectares in Germany in 2013. This was an increase in area of 7%. The total harvest amount equalled 32,600 tonnes, Fruchthandel.de reports.

The harvested amount increased by 17%, despite the weather conditions not being optimal for berries. The Federal Bureau of Statistics (Destatis) stated that blueberries were once again the most harvested berries from the open ground cultivation. The total harvested amount of blueberries was 10,300 tonnes. They were followed by blackberries (6,800 tonnes), red and white currants (5,800 tonnes) and raspberries (4,300 tonnes).

According to figures from the agricultural office of statistics, 2013 saw 48 farms cultivate small fruit over an area of 256 hectares, in Germany's Rhineland region, producing 1,000 tonnes of small fruit. Almost half the harvest consisted of elderberries but currants and raspberries were also widely cultivated.