Number of greenhouse vegetable farms decreasing

The gross yield of greenhouse vegetables in the Netherlands fell 7.9 per cent to 1.8 million tonnes in 2022, with gross yields of tomatoes and cucumbers in particular decreasing. The decline is mainly linked to high energy prices, which caused cultivation to start later and end earlier. Aubergines and bell peppers were less affected because they can be grown more energy-efficiently in winter. 

When compared to 10 years earlier, the gross yield in vegetable greenhouse cultivation was still up in 2022, with an increase of 5.4 per cent. In particular, the gross yield of aubergines (+40.4 per cent) and bell peppers (+26.1 per cent) increased during that period, while that of tomatoes showed a decline of 4.3 per cent.

Hectare yield of tomatoes down by about 11 per cent

The yield per hectare of greenhouse vegetables fell 7.6 per cent to 356 tonnes in 2022, compared to a year earlier. The hectare yield of tomatoes fell by 11.0 per cent in the last year, while for cucumbers it decreased by 7.3 per cent.

Number of greenhouse vegetable farms decreased

On 1 April 2022, there were 1160 greenhouse vegetable farms in the Netherlands, 6.4 per cent less than a year earlier. Compared with 10 years earlier, the number of farms decreased by 433, a drop of 27.2 per cent. Especially the number of farms engaged in growing tomatoes has fallen since then; by 32.6 per cent. But the number of farms growing cucumbers (-26.9 per cent) and peppers (-25.7 per cent) also showed a decline at the same time.

Cbs.nl