A Start-up takes the cultivation of Asian vegetables and Herbs even in the Hand. The mass-produced goods from Asia was the impetus.

Pretty in Green: the founders*beats inside of Fresh Tasia photo: André Wunstorf

the first step in the greenhouse is a warm, sultry air. At 23 degrees Cesius and a humidity of 80 percent, snake beans shimmy out of the ceiling, you can see small Pak-Choi-plants Vietnamese coriander and water spinach hanging out of the basin with the roots in water. The water is warmed by a vegetation heating. "As we warm the feet of people like, like the water spinach also prefers warm," explains Ralf Szydlewski with a Grin. Since April of this year he runs together with his wife, Rongrong Szydlewki a greenhouse in Berlin-Spandau.

With your Start-up Fresh Tasia want to oppose Ralf, formerly an electrical engineer, and Rongrong, the studied actually Japanese, the quantities of imported vegetables from abroad, Fresh from the Region.

Since June, the two Asian vegetables and herbs to plant. The plant seeds come to you by Post from China and Japan. About 8,000 plants, and twelve species grow today in the 1,600-square-foot site. Rongrong comes from China and lives in Germany for seven years. You've missed fresh Asian vegetables in Germany. "The water spinach that you can buy in the Store, has no taste," she says. "Then we make it for yourself."

About 2.929.000 tonnes of fresh vegetables were imported in the year 2018, a total of to Germany. The calculations of the Federal Statistical office. For comparison: An African bull elephant weighs about 6 – 7 tons. The bulk of it, about 2.728.000 tons, came from the EU28 countries, for example, to 202,000 tons from outside the EU. From Asia approx. 35.100 tons of imported fresh vegetables.

came To Berlin in 2018, a total of 1.090 tons of fresh vegetables from Asia. The largest part of it from the people's Republic of Laos: 108 tons.

Under the long distance transport suffers not only the quality of the products, but also the environment.

in addition to the taste, the quality of the imported vegetables, according to Ralf questionable. So the idea came with the greenhouse. The best sellers are the spinach, snake beans and water. The only Problem: The water spinach has just aphids, which, however, interfere with the clientele hardly. Rongrong see the thing with Humor: "The end users are pleased with the aphids, because they will see that we use no chemical plant protection." However, even after the employees of the company washed the plants and the shoots where the leaf sat in lice, have been cut off, could not be contained the plague. Biological plants should be used for protection. "We have to respond. It has also an economic aspect“, says Ralf.

organic certification vegetables from Spandau gets. It can be used no chemical pesticides, mineral fertilizers, in large quantities is harmful for the environment and, therefore, Betpapel for certified organic products is not allowed, don't want to Ralf and Rongrong do without. More important of the two, that the products are regional. "The customers want, the Regional. Since Organic and quality certificates bring nothing to me,“ explains Ralf.

"So how do we warm the feet of people like, like the water spinach is also rather hot -"

the products from the greenhouse are Sold only to private customers and Restaurants. Against the sale deneme bonusu to wholesalers, the two have made a conscious decision: "We want to be in life, neither of subsidies, as the classic farmer has to do, even petitioners from the wholesale," explains Ralf. "We want to develop as the market needs, and not, as it is to me a wholesaler requires." As many in Germany do not know the products, it is necessary to take the customer a little bit "and recipe ideas". The could not make large retailers.

A Federal snake beans, so about 270 grams, costs € 4.90. Thus, Clients do not have to go to Spandau to buy the vegetables, there are in addition to the selling site a total of four Pick-up locations in Berlin and Falkensee.

One of them is the Berlin fruit shop in Wilmersdorf. Here lovers*can buy interior Asian kitchen is the chip duration vegetables to order. "The bitter melon I have tried also change. You have to love already. This is not so for the European taste,“ says Markus Butschke, head of the shop. Per month he will buy about 2 to 3 kilograms of vegetables from about 20 kilometers away in the greenhouse. Customers are private persons, the cook with the vegetables at home.

Before the cooperation with Fresh Tasia, the Asian vegetables in the Store was from the wholesale market purchased. Here are the products came mainly from other European countries such as France. A few of the products had also been imported from Asia. "Due to the long Transport, the quality was often poor," says Butschke. Therefore, he had been from the concept of Spandau quickly convinced. Financially, would not change in comparison to the buying at the wholesale market a lot of for the Store, so Butschke.

in addition to the planted greenhouse in Spandau, another glass house is still standing, by and between concrete plates, a few isolated plants in the earth. At the end of March, a Street Food Festival, invited the Asian Restaurants for cooking. In the long term, here is a Fine-Dining Restaurant is to be built. "We plan to plant bitter melon as a room divider, then there is also the greenhouse atmosphere," says Ralf and the yet more site-looking hall to wander.

On the edge of the greenhouse, a lonely sponge depends on the cucumber. "This is an Experiment my wife," says Ralf and laughs. The two are planning a total of 15 crops. On the way there try a lot.

you Leave the warm greenhouse, blows against a cold February air. No wonder, then, that the Asian plants thrive in the greenhouse as well.