A long procession of cars is waiting near the A50 near Uden. They all come for a bowl of strawberries, a strawberry milkshake or ice cream. The waiting time is “not too bad” on Thursday early afternoon. You stand in line for an hour. But at the busiest times this can sometimes go up to three hours.
“We opened two weeks ago. We started with no expectations at all. But it was an immediate hit, ”says Jan van de Elzen. “People apparently see this as a daytime activity. Because some of them really stand in line for hours. People have no problem with that at all. ”
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That’s exactly what you hear when you ask people what inspires them to queue for so long for a few strawberries. “It’s a nice outing,” says a woman from her car. “You can’t go anywhere else now.”
“This is the day trip,” said another. “Because sitting inside is also so boring. All you do is go out with the dog and sit inside for the rest. Now you can still get your strawberry from a safe distance from the car. ”
The necessary measures have been taken to ensure that everything runs smoothly. The strawberry drive is located at a roundabout which is also the route from the highway to Bernhoven hospital. That is why measures have been taken. The road to the drive-in is now one-way and there are traffic controllers so that the roundabout is always free.
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With all the hustle and bustle, Jan van de Elzen is not afraid that his strawberries will run out quickly. “We have more than enough,” he says. “The biggest problem is having enough staff to pick.” About fifteen Polish pickers work for the company. “They live in a kind of quarantine. If those fail, I really have a problem. ”
Although managing his drive-in in the right direction is a big challenge, Jan is happy with the enormous influx. “The auction is now completely stopped. This is the salvation of my company, ”he says.
And why everyone wants their strawberries? “They prefer ours because we pick them ripe,” said Jan. “Then the strawberries are the sweetest.”
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