Family De Weerdt

In 2001, Kris and his wife Katrien took over an existing farm and named it Krikato, short for Kris-Katrien-Tomatoes. Both grew up in tomato-growing families, so they naturally started with beef tomatoes. In 2010, they demolished their old 1-hectare greenhouse and built a new 1.6-hectare one. That’s when they switched to cluster tomatoes. “It seemed like a more interesting product, and the market was clearly shifting towards cluster tomatoes,” says Kris. Today, they grow Elite and Ruby Red tomatoes.

They recently added another 14,000 m² of greenhouse space. In the future, they’re considering introducing grow lights or expanding their Ruby Red production.

The crop

Kris and Katrien harvest tomatoes every week. Tomato growing is a year-round activity, though there are quieter periods between January and February and between September and November.

“The best part of growing tomatoes is harvesting, packaging and delivering your product. On the other hand, it’s a constant job — there’s never complete rest, and there’s always some level of stress,” they say. To unwind, the De Weerdt family takes the occasional week-long holiday or goes on a ski trip. “We’d love to go on holiday a bit more often, but that’s hard to combine with tomato growing.” They also enjoy cycling in their free time.

“Pests and tomato viruses are always a challenge, though thankfully we haven’t had any issues so far. Finding good staff and training them can also be tricky,” Kris and Katrien explain.

“Our cooperation with BelOrta runs smoothly. We’re very happy with it, as it takes a big part of the sales process off our hands, which is great,” says Katrien. They also feel it’s important that consumers know they’re buying a local product. They’d love to convince people that tomatoes are just as tasty in winter, as many wrongly think otherwise.

Tip

They love eating tomatoes themselves, in a salad or on a sandwich. “Tomatoes are healthy, tasty and super versatile. A real top product!” Katrien also shares one last tip: don’t store tomatoes in the fridge, as they lose too much flavour.