It might not come as a surprise that the turnover of Royal FloraHolland of April 2020, compared to the same month last year is not comparable. Below, we will present the figures.
In cut flowers, the turnover decreased by 39%. The amount of sold items decreased by 26.6% and the average price was 16.9% lower. There are practically no increases, the decreases vary from fierce to much fiercer with the spray chrysanthemum as lowest point. For this flower, the turnover fell by 62.5%, the number of sold items dropped by 31.7% and the average price was 15 cents, more than 45% lower compared with April last year.
For the houseplants, the turnover decreased by 42.8%. The amount of sold items decreased by 38% and the average price was 7.7% lower. The turnover of the phalaenopsis, the largest subgroup, declined even further: -45.7%, against 1/3 less items and a 15.8% lower average price. And for those who want to see a bright spot, the average price can be seen as slightly positive, as it did not decrease that drastically. The tightened supply regulations seem to have had a better effect in this segment than that of the cut flowers.
In the garden plants, the figures are the least spectacular, in a positive sense. Garden centers and DIY stores continued selling, the weather was good, people are at home and started to work in their garden. The total turnover, the amount of sold items and even the average price were more or less similar to last year. The most spectacular outlier is positive. More than 20% vegetable plants were sold for a nearly 7% higher price.
The auction stresses that caution must be exercised when interpreting the figures. "The figures are averages. At the moment, at least 2,200 growers have been affected severely. The numbers do not always show this. Between as well as within the product groups, the differences can be large."
Also important to mention is that in this article, only the turnover figures of FloraHolland are being mentioned. A major part of all products are being sold through the auction (clock or negotiation), but not all trade flows are represented.