Strawberry harvest 2025: Hope for good quality despite the minimum wage discussion!

Strawberry harvest 2025: Hope for good quality despite the minimum wage discussion!

On Tuesday, May 7, 2025, the strawberry country in Saarlouis officially heralded the season of the strawberry harvest. Environment Minister Petra Berg (SPD) was also present at the traditional opening. Owner Patrik Chatelain was optimistic about the harvest year 2025, which looks promising due to the good weather conditions.

This year the first strawberries in Saarland are ripe early, but not in the self -made fields, but in tunnel cultivation. These strawberries are already available at different stalls. The prices for strawberries are around five euros per pound and thus correspond to the level of the previous year. Traders and farmers expect a good harvest and high quality, which was favored by the sufficient cold days in winter.

challenges of agriculture

While the first harvest is in full swing, there are significant discussions about the future challenges with which the industry is faced. The planned increase in the minimum wage to 15 euros per hour from 2026 ensures concern among strawberry farmers. According to a report by bayreuther-tagblatt.de warns the network of asparagus and berry associations e.V. Food production.

The wage costs for seasonal workers make up to 60 percent of total expenses for strawberry companies. Many farmers criticize the high wage costs and the unequal competition, especially compared to countries such as Spain and Greece, where the production costs are more than half lower. This price difference means that German farmers are increasingly difficult to stay competitive because they have to meet higher standards in production.

future perspectives

In addition to the financial challenges, the industry faces other problems such as lack of personnel, bureaucracy and an increase in weather extreme. These factors lead to losses in production and a loss of trust in the political support of farmers. The spokesman for the board of VSE, Simon Schumacher, reports on an uncertain future because the number of companies has dropped drastically in recent years. The number of asparagus growing companies between 2022 and 2024 fell by around 10 percent and the strawberry cultivation companies even fell by more than 11 percent.

The discussion about the minimum wage also has an impact on the availability of seasonal workers. An increase in the minimum wage could lead to fewer seasonal workers from Eastern Europe ready to work in Germany because they receive higher wages in other countries. This could not only increase the crop failures, but also favor the import of fruit and vegetables from other countries. This would be contradicted to the climate goals of the federal government, which is aiming for reducing CO₂ emissions.

For the strawberry country and other regional businesses, it is to be hoped that there will be too little frost in the high season of the strawberries, which depends on the ice saints. The self -picking fields on which the most aromatic varieties of the strawberries grow only open in June. Until then, the industry remains in a tense dialogue about the necessary political solutions to secure domestic production and to master the challenges of the future.