Cucumber grower Grüne Fee loses out on EU support and considers cutting product range

The European Commission rejected a proposal to add vegetable growers to the list of large energy consumers, leaving Luunja-based greenhouse company Grüne Fee near Tartu without significant energy support it had been counting on. The company is now forced to assess early which crops remain economically viable to grow.

The cucumber-growing company Grüne Fee, based in Luunja near Tartu, faces a difficult choice after the European Commission declined to add vegetable growers to the list of large energy consumers. This decision means the company will lose out on substantial state energy support it had been expecting.

Grüne Fee, widely known as the Luunja cucumber grower, must now carefully reconsider which crops it makes sense to grow going forward. In greenhouse cultivation, energy constitutes one of the largest cost items, so the lack of energy price support is a serious blow to the company's competitiveness.

The company plans to analyse its product range overhaul early on to identify which crops remain profitable to grow without additional support. Cutting its range could mean the company abandons some products entirely.