Colruyt Group successfully tests local cultivation of early fresh ginger
Cru is offering early fresh ginger in its markets from today. The ginger is grown locally and sustainably without pesticides and with a minimum of organic fertiliser. The quality ginger has a stronger taste than imported ginger and its ecological footprint was kept as low as possible. The early ginger is the result of sustainable innovation by Colruyt Group in cooperation with the REO Veiling (REO Auction) and the Provinciaal Proefcentrum voor de Groenteteelt (Provincial Experimental Centre for Vegetable Production).
Thursday, November 4, 2021
Fresh Belgian ginger at Cru in early November
As a retailer, Colruyt Group is increasingly aware of the impact of food on our health, but also on our planet. We are constantly working on making the products more sustainable to enable conscious sustainable choices for customers. In this context, Colruyt Group started a pilot project in cooperation with the REO Veiling and the Provinciaal Proefcentrum voor de Groenteteelt in order to grow early fresh ginger locally in Belgium. This is a project of Colruyt Group's food innovation team for Cru in which the ecological footprint of ginger is reduced thanks to local sustainable cultivation.
Local and sustainable cultivation
The early ginger is grown in a glass greenhouse at the Provinciaal Proefcentrum voor de Groenteteelt and under an unheated plastic tunnel and a cold greenhouse at the two growers of the REO Veiling. The ginger is planted in the spring after the Ice Saints and harvested in the autumn. For cultivation, a minimum of organic fertilisers and no pesticides are used. Growing locally emits less CO2, as less transport is needed to get the product to the consumer. The Belgian ginger goes from the field to your plate. Traditionally, ginger comes from Asia and South America, which gives the product a larger ecological footprint.
Fresh ginger
The Belgian early ginger is harvested when the plant's foliage is still green and the ginger does not have a chance to harden or form a skin. As a result, the ginger has a pronounced flavour, is aromatic, contains no fibre and a lot of juice and is fresher than the imported version from Asia and South America. The root tubers are taken out of the ground and washed, and the prime quality ginger with a limited shelf life is then ready for consumption. Both the quality of the fresh ginger and the yield of this first local cultivation of this pilot project are successful, so scaling up and further sustainability of the cultivation is being evaluated.
Exclusive to Cru
The Belgian quality ginger that was planted in the spring is temporarily available from early November in the fresh markets of Cru in Antwerp, Overijse and Ghent. Then it is time to wait for the next crop. Cru customers are the first to get the chance to taste this local product. The root of the ginger plant is a trendy ingredient. Consumers increasingly use it because it is so healthy and ideal for flavouring dishes, both fresh and as ginger syrup or in ginger powder. The internal taste and user tests already confirm that this Belgian ginger differs from the regular product from Brazil, Peru and China. Colruyt Group is therefore proud to market this tasty and ultra-fresh product from Belgian soil.
For questions, please contact the Colruyt GroupPress Office
via [email protected] or 0473 92 45 10.